mitim 


Mrs.  Burton 
',      $  i 

rlarrilon 


University  of  California  •  Berkeley 

FROM  THE  PAPERS  OF 
Frederick    J.    Mosher 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


Other  Books  by  Mrs.  Burton  Harrison 

Published  by 

Lamson,  Wolffe  and  Company. 

A  Virginia  Cousin,  and  Ear  Harbor  Tales. 
The  Merry  Maid  of  Arcady,  His  Lordship, 
and  Other  Stories. 


Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


By 

Mrs.  Burton  Harrison 


VTCRESCIT 


Lamson,  Wolffe  and   Company 

Boston,  New  York  and  London 
MDCCCXCVII 


Copyright,  1897, 
By  Lamson,  Wolffe  and  Company. 


All  rights  reserved. 


Norwood  Press 

J.  5.   Gushing  &  Co.  —  Berwick  &  Smith 
Norwood  Mass.    U.  S.  A. 


To  B.  H. 


A  Son   of  the   Old   Dominion 


ONE  soft  yet  brilliant  day  of  spring  found 
Captain  Geoffry  Flower — as  handsome  a 
young  sprig  of  His  Majesty  King  George 
III.'s  Royal  Dragoons  as  one  would  be  likely 
to  see  in  a  month  o'  Sundays  —  riding  along  the 
shady  road  of  a  wooded  ridge  on  the  west  bank 
of  the  Potomac  in  Virginia.  Cap-a-pie,  the 
horseman  was  equipped  with  nice  regard  for  the 
requirements  of  military  undress  in  an  officer  of 
wealth  and  station ;  his  rosy  Saxon  cheeks,  his 
bright  blue  eyes,  his  athletic  figure,  his  look 
of  vigorous  health;  the  mounted  servant,  the 
pack-horses  carrying  portmanteaux  and  sundry 
rich  accoutrements  —  all  these  should  have  en- 
sured their  owner  against  a  clouded  brow.  But 
to  Flower  the  times  were  evidently  out  of  joint ; 
his  open  face  wore  something  nearly  akin  to  a 
blush,  combined  with  something  very  like  a 
frown. 

Here  was  his  grievance.  He  was  a  stranger, 
on  his  way  to  visit  relatives  whom  he  had  never 
met,  and  before  whom  he  felt  in  his  secret  heart 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


a  little  bit  inclined  to  pose  as  a  being  of  oppor- 
tunities and  advantages  superior  to  theirs. 
Not  only  had  the  horses,  hired  in  Williams- 
burg  for  the  expedition  hither,  broken  down 
utterly  in  the  journey  over  toilsome  roads,  but 
the  miserable  hacks  secured  to  replace  them  at 
Dumfries,  had  now  proved  to  be  mere  tired 
Dobbins  from  the  plough,  and  were  limping 
sorrowfully  along  the  last  stretch  of  the  road. 
What  guise  was  this  in  which  to  present  him- 
self before  the  critical  gaze  of  Colonel  Hugh 
Poythress  of  Vuedel'Eau  Plantation,  a  gentle- 
man who,  on  the  authority  of  Lord  Dunmore 
himself,  was  the  best  judge  of  horse-flesh  in  the 
Province — and  that  was  saying  much?  At 
three-and-twenty,  a  man  feels  such  small  rubs 
of  ill  fortune  more  than  the  actual  hardships  of 
fate,  or  even  pains  of  body ;  and,  adding  to 
this  annoyance  Flower's  encounter  half  a  mile 
farther  back  upon  the  road,  we  shall  understand 
the  cloud  betwixt  him  and  the  sun. 

Under  an  aisle  of  forest  trees  linked  together 
by  festoons  of  wild  grape  whose  blossoms  bur- 
dened the  air  with  nectar-like  perfume,  a  cortege 
had  met  and  passed  him,  filling  his  eyes  with 
sudden  dazzlement.  In  a  chariot  of  the  latest 
London  mode,  with  body  and  wheels  of  myrtle 
green,  and  panels  bedecked  with  gilded  scrolls 
and  painted  garlands,  drawn  by  four  satin- 
smooth  bays,  upon  two  of  which  were  perched 
negro  postilions  in  smart  livery,  Geoffry  had 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


caught  a  glimpse  of  two  ladies,  elegantly 
dressed.  Mother  and  daughter,  he  fancied 
them  to  be,  both  fair,  one  young  and  mischiev- 
ous. For,  while  Geoffry  drew  out  of  the  road, 
and  took  off  his  hat  to  the  passing  vision,  there 
was  quite  time  enough  for  him  to  absorb  the 
impression  of  a  girl's  half-satirical,  half-laugh- 
ing survey  of  his  mud-splashed  riding-gear,  his 
sorry  steed,  his  servant  in  worse  plight.  Fol- 
lowing the  chariot  had  come  a  lively  lad  on 
horseback,  attended  by  a  negro  groom.  "  By 
George,  what  a  spavined  nag ! "  had  floated 
back  in  the  boy's  gay  treble,  to  GeofFry's  ting- 
ling ears.  The  kind  smiles  and  gracious  nods 
the  ladies  had  bestowed  in  answer  to  his  bow, 
could  not  efface  this  crowning  touch  to  the 
vexations  of  a  day.  That  he,  Geoffry  Flower, 
in  form  the  pride  and  model  of  his  regiment, 
the  beloved  of  society  at  home  in  England, 
should  thus  serve  as  a  laughing  stock  for  a 
family  of  provincials!  His  strong  desire  to 
relieve  himself  by  riding  back  to  Dumfries  and 
breaking  the  innkeeper's  neck,  was  restrained 
only  by  the  condition  of  his  unlucky  mount, 
who,  at  this  juncture,  went  lame  for  good  and 
all. 

"  Come  along  here,  Keys,  and  change  saddles 
with  me,"  he  shouted  to  his  attendant,  at  the 
top  of  his  lungs.  "You  will  have  to  walk  and 
lead  this  brute.  I  suppose,"  he  added,  in  a 
lower  tone,  ashamed  of  his  vehemence,  "  it 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


can't  be  far  hence  to  the  house  of  Colonel 
Poythress,  whom  I  could  wish  had  been  in 
Jericho,  before  I  set  out  on  this  cursed  jaunt 
in  search  of  him/' 

Flower  had  pulled  up  on  the  road  at  a  point 
where  the  wood  opened  into  a  bosky  dell,  its 
grassy  carpet  sprinkled  with  blue  blossoms  of 
the  fairy  flax.  In  the  tangle  of  tender  leaves 
and  bracken  surrounding  this  sylvan  nook, 
sprang  so  many  wild  pink  azaleas  and  tall  blue 
lupines,  under  branches  starred  with  the  ivory 
disks  of  dogwood,  he  could  hardly  be  expected 
to  distinguish  among  them  the  blossom  face  of 
a  girl,  who,  upon  hearing  him  approach,  had 
resolved  to  lie  perdue  until  he  should  pass  on. 

The  little  ripple  of  mirth  she  emitted  (and  as 
quickly  suppressed)  over  his  burst  of  boyish 
passion,  came  indeed  to  Flower's  ears ;  but, 
seeing  nobody,  he  supposed  it  to  be  the  note 
of  some  bird  nesting  in  the  thicket.  All  might 
have  gone  as  projected  by  the  damsel,  if  the 
stout  young  sapling  of  aspen  she  had  but  just 
managed  to  bend  down  to  ride  upon,  had  not 
shown  symptoms  of  escaping  her.  As  she 
moved  to  shift  her  seat  a  little  farther  along  its 
stem,  the  sapling  proved  her  master ;  with  a 
bold  upward  dash,  while  shaking  off  the  con- 
queror, it  sprung  back  erect  among  the  minor 
royalties  of  the  forest.  At  this  piece  of  self- 
assertion  on  the  aspen's  part,  there  was  infinite 
commotion  in  the  wood ;  a  whir  of  leaves,  a 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  5 

cheep  of  birds,  a  chattering  of  squirrels,  a 
swish  of  branches  meeting  and  clashing  and 
settling  back  into  place  .  .  .  ! 

Geoffry,  wondering  what  manner  of  game  he 
had  flushed,  made  a  bound  toward  the  thicket 
and  tore  apart  its  screen  of  verdure.  There, 
on  the  ground  where  she  had  slid  from  the 
sapling,  he  saw  a  captivating,  if  angry  little 
maid,  struggling  hard  to  get  upon  her  feet,  her 
gown  held  fast  in  a  hundred  places  by  the  green 
prickles  of  a  sturdy  thorn-bush. 

"  Permit  me,  madam,  to  assist  you,"  said 
the  Captain,  politely  bowing. 

"  I  can  do  quite  well  without  your  interposi- 
tion, sir,"  she  observed,  somewhat  pettishly ; 
but,  her  efforts  proving  fruitless,  she  was  fain 
to  accept  of  Geoffry's  hand,  and  with  a  tug, 
and  much  rending  of  India  cotton,  he  landed 
her  finally  beside  him,  where  she  stood  in  sil- 
ver-buckled shoes  that  Titania  might  have 
worn.  Then,  with  scant  recognition  of  his 
vicinity,  she  arched  both  brown  hands  over 
her  mouth,  and  sent  forth  a  long  clear  call, 
promptly  answered  from  afar  by  a  man's  voice. 
Directly  after  came  the  sound  of  an  animal's 
quick  approach  through  the  undergrowth,  and 
a  large  hound,  bursting  out  of  the  bushes,  di- 
rected his  course  toward  the  stranger  with  evi- 
dently fierce  intent. 

"  Down,  Jupiter  !  Down,  boy  !  "  cried  the 
girl ;  and  as  the  dog,  obeying,  slunk  behind 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


her,  to  eye  Flower  with  continuing  displeasure, 
she  went  on  to  address  the  young  soldier  with 
an  air  of  cherubic  patronage.  "  Believe  me,  sir, 
you  are  quite  safe  whilst  I  am  here,"  she  said 
kindly. 

Flower  laughed  aloud.  He  did  not  think  it 
needful  to  put  hand  to  the  hunting-knife  his 
English  friends  had  counselled  him  to  carry  in 
Virginia,  or  to  the  silver-mounted  pistols  in  his 
holsters,  to  show  her  that  he  was  well  guarded 
otherwise  than  by  herself. 

It  was  a  new  and  not  unpleasing  experience 
for  our  bold  dragoon  to  be  held  in  leash  by  a 
dainty  child  with  rose-leaf  cheeks,  with  auburn 
locks  tucked  into  a  mob-cap,  with  pouting  scar- 
let lips  now  curved  into  a  friendly  smile  for  him. 

"You  are  gracious,  madam,  to  thus  extend 
your  protection  to  a  lonely  wayfarer,"  he  had 
begun  in  high-flown  strain,  but  was  interrupted 
by  the  arrival  from  the  same  direction  whence 
had  come  his  enemy,  the  dog,  of  a  tall  youth, 
who  threaded  his  way  toward  them  through  a 
maze  of  young  oaks  and  hickories,  sweet  gums 
and  walnuts,  with  a  skill  that  betrayed  the 
practised  woodsman. 

"  Oh,  cousin ! "  exclaimed  the  girl,  coquet- 
tishly.  "  Here  have  I  been  sadly  put  about, 
and  near  to  an  accident,  all  because  you  chose 
to  stop  behind  to  doctor  a  sick  dog !  It  is  this 
gentleman  who  has  been  so  good  as  to  rescue 
me  from  the  wretched  briar  bed  wherein  I  fell." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


"  I  am  Geoffry  Flower,  at  your  service,"  said 
the  person  indicated.  "Captain  in  His  Maj- 
esty's Dragoons,  but  at  present  attached  to  the 
staff  of  His  Excellency  the  Royal  Governor  at 
Williamsburg." 

"  And  I  am  Rolfe  Poythress,  a  kinsman  of 
the  owner  of  this  property/'  said  the  new- 
comer, with  grave  courtesy. 

"  I  carry  a  letter  from  my  Lord  Dunmore 
to  Colonel  Poythress,"  Flower  went  on,  in  his 
courtliest  phrase ;  "  a  gentleman  whose  early 
acquaintance  it  is  my  most  ardent  hope  to 
make." 

"  Though  you  did  wish  my  poor  papa  at 
Jericho  because  your  horse  went  lame,"  inter- 
rupted the  girl,  with  playful  malice. 

A  guilty  blush  overspread  young  Geoffry's 
countenance,  and  ran  up  into  his  hair. 

"  You  are  Miss  Poythress  ?  "  he  faltered. 

"  Dear  lack,  no ! "  she  exclaimed  naively. 
"  I  am  but  the  little  madcap  sister  of  Miss 
Poythress,  who  has  gone  out  with  our  mamma 
in  the  chariot  to  make  visits,  whilst  I  roam  the 
fields  and  tear  my  frocks,  to  the  vexation  of 
Mistress  Judith,  my  mother's  housekeeper 
that  darns  'em.  But  all  the  same,  sir,  I  bid 
you  welcome  to  Vue  de  1'Eau  Plantation." 

So  saying,  the  damsel  executed  as  fine  a 
curtsy  as  if  one-half  the  tatters  of  her  gown 
were  not  adorning  the  nearest  bramble  bush. 

"And  if  you  will   send   your   servant  with 


8  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  horses  to  follow  the  straight  road,"  said  the 
youth  called  Rolfe,  "  he  will  find  his  way  with- 
out trouble  to  the  stables,  where  there  will  be 
plenty  of  fellows  to  look  out  for  him  and  them. 
We,  meantime,  can  walk  through  the  woods 
and  take  a  path  to  the  mansion  through  the 
Home  Farm.  You  must  be  weary  of  the 
saddle,  when  you  have  nothing  better  to  sit 
astride  of  than  that  broken-kneed  nag  of  the 
old  skinflint,  Giles  Simpson,  at  Dumfries." 

GeofFry,  welcoming  an  opportunity,  poured 
out  his  wrongs  at  Simpson's  hands.  In  a  short 
time,  the  three  young  people,  strolling  together, 
felt  almost  at  ease  with  one  another.  The  ap- 
pearance of  Rolfe  Poythress  interested  Flower 
the  more  that  it  piqued  his  curiosity.  There 
was  about  him  so  little  to  mark  the  young 
Virginian  as  belonging  to  the  wealthy  and 
powerful  Colonial  family  whose  name  he  bore, 
except  a  certain  elusive  resemblance  to  some 
portrait  Flower  had  seen  in  England,  and  could 
not  at  once  recall.  About  a  year  younger  than 
Flower,  he  was  full  six  foot  three  in  height, 
loose-jointed,  muscular,  swarthy  of  complexion, 
of  manner  shy.  He  wore  his  straight  black 
hair  unpowdered,  and  his  suit  of  walnut-dyed 
homespun  betrayed  the  cut  of  a  rustic  tailor. 
Nothing  had  he  of  social  grace  or  polish,  yet 
was  there  in  the  young  provincial's  face  that 
expression  of  steadfast  purpose,  that  conscious- 
ness of  strength,  which  made  every  stranger 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


accosting  him  look  twice,  and  end  by  trusting 
him  entirely.  His  voice  in  speaking  was  singu- 
larly low  and  sweet,  his  use  of  the  King's 
English  as  choice  as  that  of  the  aristocratic 
Oxford-bred  captain.  And  Flower  took  note 
that,  whilst  he  did  the  honours  of  the  occasion 
suitably,  it  was  as  became  the  deputy  of  his  little 
kinswoman  and  her  absent  father. 

"  I  think  I  should  have  said,  before  this," 
observed  Geoffry,  presently,  "  that  I  have  the 
pleasure  to  call  myself  a  relative  of  your  family. 
On  my  mother's  side,  I  am  a  nephew  of 
Colonel  Poythress'  cousin,  Lord  Avenel,  and, 
at  his  castle  of  Avenel  in  Devon,  have  seen  a 
portrait  —  albeit  of  a  woman  —  the  mother  of 
my  Lord,  in  fact,  that  strongly  resembles  your 
cousin,  here,  if  he  will  pardon  me  for  suggest- 
ing it." 

"  As  papa  says,  heredity  plays  strange  tricks. 
But  I  care  not  about  that  cross-grained  old 
cousin  Avenel,"  said  the  girl,  with  petulance. 

"  Nor  I,"  said  Flower,  laughing. 

"  Whether  because  my  papa  was  born  on 
this  side  the  water,"  she  went  on,  "  or  because 
he  is,  after  our  cousin's  son,  next  heir  to  the 
title,  Lord  Avenel  hath  always  chosen  to  treat 
us  with  scant  civility.  But  you  will  find  my 
mamma,  sir,  more  than  ready  to  join  with  you 
in  chat  about  Avenel  and  ancestral  portraits 
and  English  ways ;  and  my  sister  Betty  is  as 
bad.  Since  they  were  presented  at  court,  two 


io  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

years  ago,  on  my  sister's  sixteenth  birthday, 
such  things  are  forever  on  their  lips.  But  I, 
that  am  a  poor  little  plantation-bred  maiden, 
and  have  not  even  crossed  the  sea,  cannot 
be  expected  to  set  store  by  what  I  know  not 
of." 

"  Then  it  may  be  you  will  care  more  that  I 
have  the  endorsement  of  your  neighbour,  the 
distinguished  Colonel  Washington  of  Mount 
Vernon,  whom  I  had  the  honour  to  meet  at 
dinner,  at  Major  Bayard's  in  New  York,  upon 
first  arriving  in  America.  'Twas  he,  indeed, 
who  bade  me,  should  I  ever  visit  his  native 
Province,  count  upon  a  hospitable  reception 
from  my  relatives  at  Vue  de  1'Eau  Plantation." 

"  My  godpapa ! "  cried  the  girl,  radiantly. 
"  Indeed,  sir,  you  could  scarce  have  a  better 
friend  with  us,  or  with  any  family  in  the  Col- 
ony. It  is  to  call  upon  his  wife,  still  in  sad 
grief  over  the  loss  of  her  daughter  Patsey, 
who  died  last  summer,  that  my  mamma  is  gone 
to-day.  The  Colonel  is  not  yet  started  for 
Williamsburg,  or  you  would  have  crossed  him 
on  the  way." 

"  He  has  just  returned  from  a  visit  across  the 
river  to  Colonel  Calvert's,  the  father-in-law 
of  young  Mr.  Jackey  Custis,"  added  Rolfe. 
"And  the  young  married  couple  and  Miss 
Calvert  came  back  with  him  to  Mount  Vernon. 
Their  whole  party  of  gentlemen,  with  my 
uncle  and  several  others  of  the  neighbourhood, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  1 1 

set  out  this  morning  at  sunrise  for  a  day  with 
the  hounds." 

cc  Fox-hunting  is  an  every-day  affair,"  said 
the  girl ;  "  but  to-morrow  —  how  lucky,  Cap- 
tain, that  you  came  in  time  for  the  barbecue 
and  foot-race  at  Johnson's  Ferry!  Rolfe  will 
tell  you  what  fine  sport  that  is !  All  the 
neighbourhood  is  sure  to  be  there  —  the  party 
from  Mount  Vernon,  and  Belvoir,  and  Gun- 
ston,  the  Cockburns  from  Truro,  the  Mc- 
Cartys,  Gunnells,  Paynes,  Chichesters  —  oh  ! 
everybody !  Isn't  it  too  good,  Rolfe,  that 
mamma  says  I  may  go  ?  She  will  not  hear 
of  my  setting  foot  at  the  ball  they're  to  give 
at  Williamsburg  to  my  Lady  Dunmore,  because, 
forsooth,  I  am  but  just  fourteen  past.  And 
mamma  that  knows  quite  well  it  is  down  in  the 
Family  Bible  how  she  was  married  at  fifteen  !  " 

"  Perhaps  we  may  yet  coax  her  to  relent," 
said  Flower,  smiling. 

"  Not  unless  Colonel  Washington  is  on  my 
side,  and  he  teases  me  by  saying  there  is  no 
place  at  a  Palace  Ball  for  a  hoyden  miss  like 
me.  But  'twas  he  that  pleaded  for  me  to  go  to 
the  barbecue.  My  godfather  is  my  best  friend, 
after  papa ;  and  perhaps  you  come  next,  Rolfe, 
although  you  are  but  a  boy.  I  tell  my  Colonel 
secrets  even  papa  mayn't  know !  He  has  got 
in  his  pocket  a  pincushion  stuffed  with  a  lock 
of  my  hair,  and  I  have  cut  him  a  watch-paper 
the  finest  ever  I  made." 


12  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  And  is  the  Colonel's  wife  included  in  your 
friendship  for  her  husband  ?  "  Flower  went  on, 
amused  by  her  artless  talk. 

"  Um-m,"  said  the  maiden.  cc  One  does  not 
love  a  lady  as  one  loves  a  gentleman,  it  seems. 
But  she  is  good  to  me,  truly.  I  will  show  you 
my  muslin  apron  worked  by  her  own  hands. 
Remind  me,  Rolfe,  to  send  Pomp  over  to 
Mount  Vernon  with  that  setting  of  my  guinea- 
hen's  eggs  for  the  Colonel,  who  has  been  mon- 
strous unlucky  this  year  with  his  guinea-fowls 
—  and  Pomp  is  to  bring  me  back  two  Barbary 
pullets  the  hen-woman  had  the  Colonel's  orders 
to  put  aside  for  me." 

The  three  pedestrians  had,  by  now,  arrived 
at  the  spot  whence  was  to  be  had  the  most 
favourable  view  of  the  mansion,  built  on  a  site, 
known  in  earlier  Colonial  .days  as  cc  Poropo- 
tank,"  but  renamed  in  deference  to  the  taste  of 
the  present  owner's  lady,  "Vue  de  1'Eau." 
The  point  of  land  upon  which  Colonel  Poy- 
thress'  father  —  the  first  emigrant  of  his  line  to 
Virginia  —  had  erected  a  manor-house  repro- 
ducing, as  nearly  as  might  be,  his  ancestral 
home  in  a  southern  shire  of  England,  projected 
boldly  and  steeply  into  the  broad  expanse  of 
the  Potomac,  and  was  so  cut  off  upon  the  side 
before  them,  by  a  creek,  as  to  give  it  the  effect 
of  a  peninsula.  Upon  the  promontory  thus 
secured  arose  the  picturesque  pile  of  the  brick 
dwelling,  its  many  chimneys,  gables,  and  mul- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  13 

Honed  windows  overgrown  with  ivy,  rose,  and 
jasmine.  Upon  the  lawn  towered  noble  oaks 
and  chestnuts,  sheltering  a  variety  of  blossom- 
ing shrubs  and  decorative  trees,  while  in  the 
box- walled  Italian  garden  overlooking  the  water 
glowed  all  the  radiant  flowers  of  the  locality 
and  season. 

"  Why,  'tis  like  a  bit  of  home,"  cried  Geof- 
fry,  with  delight. 

"  I  hoped  'twould  please  you,"  she  said, 
beaming  pleasure  in  return. 

Rolfe  had  fallen  behind  to  give  some  advice 
to  a  shepherd  just  come  in  from  the  pastures 
carrying  in  his  arms  an  ailing  lamb.  GeofFry, 
who  could  never  resist  the  hour  and  the  pretty 
girl  combined,  essayed  a  flight  of  gallantry. 

"  I  should  give  you  leave  to  call  me  a  dull 
clod,  indeed,  did  I  fail  to  be  pleased  with  all  I 
have  seen  at  Vue  de  1'Eau,  Miss  Poythress." 

"  But  I  am  not  Miss  Poythress,"  she  per- 
sisted, without  a  trace  of  responsive  coquetry. 

"  Then,  pray,  what  may  a  far-off  kinsman 
style  your  ladyship  ? "  he  asked,  bending 
on  her  an  admiring  glance  of  his  handsome 
orbs. 

"  I  am  named  Matoaca,"  she  said  simply. 

"  Matoaca  ? " 

"  It  was  the  christened  name  of  my  mamma's 
ancestress,  the  Princess  Pocahontas,"  she  an- 
swered. "  You  know,  perhaps,  that  my  mother 
was  a  Randolph  of  Curies'  Neck  ?  " 


14  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  I  had  not  been  so  informed/'  he  answered, 
with  appropriate  gravity. 

"Yes,  she  will  tell  you,  better  than  I  can, 
all  about  those  marriages  and  intermarriages  I 
find  so  tiresome.  Rolfe,  also,  was  named  in 
honour  of  the  Lady  Pocahontas,  his  name  com- 
ing from  her  English  husband.  Like  mine,  it 
has  been  always  a  favourite  in  our  family,  tho' 
I  am  chiefly  known  as  May." 

"  That  suits  you  better,"  he  said,  noting  the 
pink  and  white  tints  of  her  high-bred  little  face. 
"And  Rolfe  is  an  inmate  of  your  home?" 

"  Dear  heart !  you  are  of  the  family,  and 
has  no  one  told  you  about  Rolfe  ?  He  lives 
far  away  up  in  the  frontier  country,  with  his 
mother,  who  is  a  widow.  Of  course  you  know 
she  is  a  cousin  of  my  mamma's  ?  " 

"Of  course,"  answered  he,  floundering  and 
confused. 

"  'Tis  a  sad  story,  about  my  father's  younger 
brother  Dick ;  and  for  years  before  he  was 
killed  by  the  Indians  in  the  massacre  of  Wild 
Cat  Hollow  there  was  little  intercourse  be- 
tween them.  One  does  not  speak  of  these 
things  except  amongst  ourselves,  you  know. 
But  Rolfe  is  the  dearest  fellow ;  and  my 
brother  Hughey  and  I  would  like  nothing 
better  than  that  he  lived  here  always.  Latterly 
he  has  taught  us  both  to  handle  a  musket  and 
a  pistol ;  and  though  mamma  will  have  it  the 
practice  does  not  befit  a  lady  of  my  quality,  I 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  15 

am  as  good  a  shot  as  Hughey,  now.  Is  it  not 
so,  Rolfe  ?  "  she  added,  the  young  man  at  that 
moment  coming  up  with  them. 

"  May  is,  indeed,  as  proficient  with  firearms 
as  she  is  in  the  saddle,"  was  the  indulgent 
answer.  "  Though  we  do  not  venture  to  boast 
before  my  Aunt  Poythress  of  what  she  calls 
'  buckskin  accomplishments/  ' 

"  For  my  part,  I  would  I  could  know  more 
of  c  buckskin  accomplishments  '  in  Virginia,'* 
said  Flower.  "  Since  I  arrived  at  Williams- 
burg  it  has  been  little  more  than  England  at 
second  hand.  I  long  to  see  the  great  woods, 
the  free  life  of  the  frontiersman,  the  Indian 
trail,  and  the  big  hunting  we  have  heard 
about." 

cc  Some  day  you  must  visit  my  part  of  the 
Province,"  responded  Rolfe.  "  I  think  that 
will  meet  all  your  expectations  of  forest  soli- 
tude." 

"  I  should  dearly  like  to  go  there,"  said 
Geoffry ;  "  and  I  hope  Fate  will  be  kind 
enough  to  turn  my  steps  in  that  direction 
while  I  am  in  the  Colony ;  but  a  soldier  is  as 
you  know,  a  creature  of  the  moment  only, 
and  never  knows  where  any  future  hour  may 
find  him." 

Rolfe's  eyes  sparkled  with  longing. 

"  What  would  I  give  for  the  right  to  say  the 
same  !  "  he  answered. 

"You    have    but    to    join    us,"     answered 


1 6  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Flower.  "  Surely  a  fine  athletic  fellow  like 
you  could  clap  on  the  King's  uniform  in  a 
trice,  if  he  wanted  to  enlist  in  the  Royal 
service/' 

"  There  is  a  duty  more  binding  on  me  than 
my  duty  to  the  King,"  said  the  youth,  mod- 
estly. 

"  I  should  tell  you,"  volunteered  May,  evi- 
dently burning  with  sympathy,  "  what  Rolfe 
never  will,  that  he  is  the  best  son  in  the  world ; 
and  that  his  mother  has  ever  urged  on  him  to 
prepare  himself  for  teaching  a  school  for  the 
children  of  the  settlers  in  their  neighbourhood. 
And  now  that  Rolfe  has  the  promise  of  the 
school  —  " 

"  I  may  as  well  renounce  my  dreams  of  mili- 
tary service  once  and  for  all,"  interrupted  Rolfe, 
with  an  attempt  at  cheerfulness.  "Just  now,  I 
am  in  process  of  being  coached  to  be  a  country 
pedagogue,  by  my  uncle's  tutor,  worthy  Mr. 
Snow ;  and  next  month  I  am  to  assume  the 
duties  that  will  for  the  rest  of  my  life  find  me 
birching  learning  into  urchins  as  'twas  birched 
into  me,  and  wielding  the  ruler  in  our  new 
academy." 

"  Pardon  me,"  added  Flower,  with  all  a 
soldier's  pride,  "  if  I  say  you  were  meant  for 
better  things.  And  —  pardon  me  again  — 
surely  your  Uncle  Poythress  —  " 

"  There  are  reasons  —  'tis  a  long  story,"  said 
the  youth,  colouring  deeply. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


"  You  are  right,  Captain  ;  my  cousin  would 
make  a  fine  soldier,"  cried  the  girl,  interposing. 
cc  But  then  Rolfe  can  do  anything  he  tries  to 
do.  Why,  he  can  read  his  Latin  off-hand  as 
well  as  Mr.  Snow ;  and  there  isn't  a  colt  in  the 
paddock  he  couldn't  master  —  and  as  for  shoot- 
ing and  swimming,  and  fencing  —  " 

"  Stop,  stop,  cousin,"  protested  Rolfe,  ill  at 
ease.  "  These  are  not  things  to  say  to  one 
man  about  another.  You  will  excuse  her, 
Captain  Flower ;  at  fourteen  a  maiden  has 
scarcely  the  knowledge  —  " 

"  Fourteen,  fourteen  !  "  exclaimed  May,  in- 
terrupting him  with  a  little  stamp  of  her  foot. 
"  Am  I  never  to  hear  the  last  of  it  ?  If  you 
were  as  young  as  that,  Rolfe,  do  you  think  I'd 
be  reminding  you  of  your  misfortune.  No,  no, 
I'll  not  listen  to  another  word  from  you.  See 
if  I  give  you  your  revenge  at  backgammon, 
to-night." 

They  had  come  out  into  the  Vue  de  1'Eau 
farm-village,  a  hive  of  industries,  peopled  with 
busy,  cheery  blacks  ;  and,  while  Rolfe  tarried 
to  make  his  peace  with  May,  Flower  strolled 
around  it,  looking  with  curiosity  upon  this 
world  in  little.  In  neat  sheds  gathered  against 
a  background  of  spacious  barns  and  stables,  he 
saw  convict  white  servants  employed  in  car- 
pentry, shoe-making,  and  other  arts  of  skilled 
labour.  Elsewhere  were  mills,  a  distillery,  a 
tannery,  storehouses  for  corn  and  tobacco,  a 


1 8  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

wheelwright's  and  a  cooper's  shop,  and  a  smithy 
in  full  blast.  In  the  negro  cabins,  seen  through 
the  young  green  of  spring  foliage,  spinning, 
dyeing,  weaving,  and  tailoring  for  plantation 
use  went  on  in  view  of  the  passer-by.  Flower, 
who  surveyed  the  scene  with  an  Englishman's 
appreciation  of  farming  on  a  large  and  inde- 
pendent scale,  did  not,  to  the  others  who  had 
rejoined  him,  stint  his  praise.  From  this  cen- 
tre of  activity  his  eye  roved  approvingly  to  the 
broad  acres  of  rich  arable  land,  broken  up 
with  fields  and  orchards,  that  enframed  it ;  to 
the  quarters  and  offices  of  the  domestic  ser- 
vants, the  homestead  stables  and  fowl-yards 
nearer  the  mansion  house ;  thence,  below,  to 
the  shining  expanse  of  the  wide  river,  whereon 
lay  at  anchor  a  trim  vessel  in  process  of  load- 
ing with  tobacco  by  negroes,  singing  as  they 
worked.  All  bespoke  baronial  plenty,  good 
management,  and  peace,  and  the  visitor  felt 
his  respect  for  his  unseen  host  increase  accord- 
ingly. Before  the  three  pedestrians,  chatting 
again  in  friendly  fashion,  passed  under  an  iron 
gateway  consisting  of  airy  scrolls  held  together 
by  monograms  and  armorial  bearings  that  led 
to  the  lawn  of  silvery  English  turf,  May  re- 
newed Flower's  old  griefs  by  proposing  a  visit 
to  the  stable  to  make  sure  that  his  horses  and 
his  servant  had  been  properly  received.  There, 
he  found  the  innkeeper's  Rosinantes  installed 
with  honours  better  bestowed  on  better  steeds ; 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  19 

his  servant,  Keys,  lording  it  over  the  negro 
grooms  with  gasconading  boasts  of  grandeur 
far-away,  and  disclaimers  of  aught  but  hired 
proprietorship  in  such  paltry  cattle.  These 
loud -mouthed  protestations  of  the  honest 
trooper  dropped  into  a  lower  note  when  his 
master  came  in  sight ;  but,  contriving  to  step 
aside  with  Flower,  he  informed  him  that,  what- 
ever might  be  the  accommodation  allotted  to 
Christian  flesh  and  blood  on  a  Virginian  planta- 
tion, there  was  no  doubt  that  the  beasts  were 
cared  for  like  royalty. 

"  Then  why  on  earth  need  you  have  treated 
the  stable  yard  to  such  condescending  prate  as 
I  heard  when  I  came  up,  you  rascal  ? "  asked 
Geoffry,  impatiently. 

"  Faith,  Captain,  'twas  just  for  the  honour  of 
the  old  country,"  said  the  fellow,  with  a  grin. 
"  Look  yonder  in  the  stall  of  the  master's 
hunter,  at  the  rack  made  of  pure  mahogany, 
with  silver  nails.  Why,  the  bare-foot  groom 
that  has  charge  of  the  creature  sleeps,  at  night, 
on  a  pallet  by  his  side,  and  the  horse's  very 
drinking-vessel  is  rimmed  with  silver.  'Tis 
like  the  tales  our  old  Devon  sailors  used  to 
tell  of  the  golden  Indies,  sir;  and  since  here 
we've  come  under  a  cloud,  like,  and  no  one 
but  me  to  stand  up  for  our  gentility,  surely 
you'd  not  be  depriving  poor  Keys  of  his  right- 
ful gift  of  eloquence." 

"  Take  care  your  rightful  gift  of  eloquence 


2O  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

does  not  bring  us  to  confusion  some  fine  day," 
said  his  master,  who  could  not  withhold  a 
smile  at  the  man's  droll  countenance.  "And, 
as  quickly  as  you  can,  get  into  the  house,  and 
make  re#dy  for  me  a  bath  and  a  change  of 
clothes." 

"  Aye,  sir ;  there'll  be  gentry  in  plenty  to 
sup  here  after  the  fox-hunt,  and  good  cheer  in 
hall  and  kitchen,  if  what  these  negroes  say  be 
true.  My  mouth  fairly  waters  at  the  bill  of 
fare.  D'ye  think,  sir,  they  could  ha'  been 
making  it  out  more  than  it's  really  like  to 
be  ? "  he  added,  the  pallor  of  suspicion  steal- 
ing into  his  muddy  countenance. 

"  Set  a  thief  to  catch  a  thief,  you  know, 
Keys,"  answered  GeofFry,  enjoying  his  facto- 
tum's alarm ;  then  strolling  off,  he  rejoined 
May,  who  had  been  darting  like  a  swallow  in 
and  out  of  the  stalls,  bestowing  love  pats  upon 
such  horses  as  the  hunt  had  left  there. 

"  Here  is  Diabolus,  the  hunter  my  papa 
rides  when  he  wants  to  save  his  own  especial 
Ajax,"  she  said,  entering  fearlessly  the  compart- 
ment of  a  young  and  dangerous-looking  chest- 
nut who  allowed  her  to  handle  him  with  every 
mark  of  pleasure.  "  'Twas  Rolfe  who  trained 
Diabolus  to  saddle,  when  the  horse-breaker  had 
failed ;  and  there's  no  jumper  like  him,  far  or 
near.  Here  is  my  saddle-horse,  and  that's  my 
sister's ;  and  the  gray  in  the  next  stall  will, 
I  dare  say,  be  put  at  your  disposal  for  our  ride 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  21 

to  the  barbecue,  unless  you  like  better  to  go 
with  the  elders  in  the  chariot." 

Flower's  eyes  sparkled  at  the  prospect  of 
bestriding  the  beautiful  thoroughbred  pointed 
out  to  him.  They  had  just  turned  to  leave 
the  stables,  when  the  sound  of  wheels  on  a 
bridge  crossing  the  creek  at  some  distance 
from  the  broad  entrance  gates  was  heard ; 
and,  directly,  its  four  horses  at  a  gallop,  the 
Cinderella's  chariot  and  outriders  Flower  had 
met  in  the  wood  road,  came  into  sight. 

"There  are  mamma  and  my  sister,"  ex- 
claimed May ;  "  and  that  is  my  brother  Hugh, 
a  dear  boy  but  a  pickle  of  mischief,  following." 

Rolfe,  who  had  left  his  companions  like  an 
arrow  from  the  bow,  was  on  hand  to  assist  the 
ladies  in  alighting,  before  the  postilions  had 
pulled  up  their  champing  horses  at  the  door 
stone.  Madam  Poythress,  comely  of  person, 
chubby,  short  of  breath,  voluble,  brave  in 
finery,  came  first.  In  her,  Geoffry  saw  at 
once  the  belle  of  a  passing  generation,  still 
rooted  in  the  belief  that  men  were  born  in 
the  world  to  be  footstools  to  womankind. 
After  the  mother,  poising  for  a  moment  upon 
the  carpeted  step  of  the  chariot,  as  lightly  as 
a  bird  upon  a  bough,  conscious  of  rare  beauty, 
her  bosom  softly  swelled  with  the  presence  of 
a  new  observer  of  the  admiring  sex,  her  low 
laugh  rippling  like  a  brook  in  June,  —  followed 
a  young  person,  at  eighteen  so  renowned  a  toast 


22  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

among  tide-water  Virginians  and  visiting  for- 
eigners that  already  her  mien  proclaimed  the 
serene  willingness  to  be  looked  upon,  of  a  born 
princess  upon  her  outings. 

"That's  Betty,"  said  Flower's  companion, 
with  exulting  pride.  "Now  you  will  see  how 
foolish  you  were  to  suppose  that  I  could  have 
been  Miss  Poythress." 

Geoffry,  his  own  heart  assailed  by  the  radiant 
insolence  of  the  vision,  needed  not  the  intui- 
tion of  his  age  in  matters  of  the  kind,  to  divine 
that  the  arm  of  the  poor  kinsman  upon  which 
the  beauty's  gloved  fingers  had  rested  for  a 
moment  on  her  descent  to  terra-firma^  was 
devoted  primarily  to  her  service.  Rolfe's  dark 
face,  illuminated  by  his  delight  at  her  return, 
told  too  plainly  the  tale  of  a  passion  that, 
whether  for  good  or  ill,  had  declared  its  empire 
over  his  being. 

There  was  little  delay  in  cordial  acceptance 
of  a  guest  at  Vue  de  TEau ;  and  while,  upon 
his  presentation  to  the  ladies  by  Rolfe,  Captain 
Flower  put  his  heels  together  and  swept  the  turf 
with  his  cocked  hat,  simultaneously  Madam 
Poythress  and  Miss  Betty  dropped  upon  the 
gravel  in  two  of  the  prettiest  "  cheeses  "  ever 
seen.  Betty,  first  to  recover  her  graceful 
equilibrium,  stood  with  the  westering  sunlight 
shining  full  upon  her  skin  of  snow  and  roses, 
her  eyes  half  dropt,  listening,  whilst  her  mother 
took  the  field  of  speech. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  23 

"  I  know  you  well  by  repute,  Captain,"  said 
the  smiling  matron.  "  And  the  wonder  is  we 
never  chanced  to  meet  in  town,  or  at  dear  old 
Avenel.  How  glad  we  are  to  bid  you  welcome 
to  our  home !  I  esteem  it  quite  friendly  of 
my  Lord  Dunmore  to  have  sent  you  now,  since 
next  week  we  are  off  to  Williamsburg,  of  course, 
for  the  sitting  of  Burgesses,  and  this  ball  that 
is  making  such  a  pother  of  preparation  in  the 
Colony.  But  you  will  return  hither  with  us,  I 
hope;  the  Colonel  and  I  will  never  take  no  for 
an  answer.  Little  we  imagined,  my  daughter 
Betty  and  I,  that  'twas  a  relative,  so  to  speak, 
we  had  nigh  run  into  the  bushes  on  our  drive. 
I  hope  that  madcap  runabout,  May,  has  prop- 
erly attended  to  your  lodging  in  the  house. 
May,  tell  Sylvia  to  tell  Dinah  to  tell  Mistress 
Judith  the  Captain  will  occupy  the  red  room 
in  the  bachelor's  wing.  You  find  us,  as  usual, 
with  a  house  full,  Cousin  Flower;  but,  as  the 
Colonel  says,  there's  always  room  for  one  more 
at  Vue  de  1'Eau,  and  your  quarters  are  not  bad, 
if  I  say  it,  that  sewed  the  bed-curtains  with 
these  hands  ;  and  'twas  Betty  worked  the  quilt." 

"Under  which  I  shall  dream  dreams  of 
angels,  madam,"  said  the  Captain,  again  put- 
ting his  heels  together  with  a  bow,  and  again 
milady  and  Betty  dipped  in  resplendent  curtsies. 

A  little  later,  Flower  was  the  occupant  of  a 
bed-room  darkling  with  mahogany,  the  furni- 
ture and  curtains  blushing  in  red  moreen,  the 


24  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

bare  floor  waxed  to  a  nicety,  a  Spode  cup  full 
of  fragrant  honeysuckle  upon  the  bed-stand,  a 
vine  of  jasmine  looking  in  at  the  open  window. 
Keys,  who  had  unpacked  and  laid  out  his  dress- 
ing-things, was  in  waiting,  smiling  broadly. 

"  'Tis  the  real  thing,  Captain,"  said  the  man. 
"  Though  it  took  three  of  the  black  pickaninnies 
to  fetch  the  spring  water  for  your  bath,  and 
three  black  girls,  under  the  housekeeper,  to  put 
the  room  to  rights  —  'twas  the  young  lady  her- 
self brought  the  posies,  sir;  and,  as  I  am  a  good 
Englishman,  this  is  the  snuggest  harbour  we 
have  found,  since  ever  we  crossed  the  sea  to  live 
among  the  Cherokees.  Oh,  sir,  but  to  smell 
the  smoke  o'  the  kitchen,  as  I  passed  through 
just  now,  would  ease  the  pangs  o'  famine's  self. 
Monster  turkeys  roasting  on  the  spits,  duck- 
lings and  chickens  in  the  stewpans,  plums  and 
spice,  sugar  and  honey,  more  rich  comestibles 
than  ever  I  see  together  since  a  Christmas  in 
the  old  country  when  I  was  a  lad !  And  the 
cooks  and  scullions  running  about,  tripping 
each  other  up,  all  the  merrier  because  sure 
their  turn  will  come." 

"  The  young  lady  put  these  flowers  here  ? " 
said  Geoffry,  unheeding  him.  "There  are  two 
young  ladies,  Keys." 

"She  was  in  here  with  Mistress  Judith,  —  a 
sour  woman  of  middle  age  who  hasn't  a  civil 
word  to  throw  away  upon  a  fellow-country- 
man,— when  I  came  back  with  the  clothes  I'd 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  25 

been  a-brushing  down  below,  and  'twas,  chere, 
Judith/  and  c  there,  Judith/  and  c  the  netted 
toilet  cover/  or  c  another  easy  chair,  Judith '  — 
nothing  suiting  her  that  wasn't  the  best,  for  your 
comfort,  sir  ;  a  flattering  lady,  if  but  of  few  years 
and  inches  —  the  one  they  call  c  little  miss/  sir." 

"That  will  do,  Keys  —  get  along  with  you," 
rejoined  GeofFry,  feeling  flat. 

Ah  !  trick  or  fancy.  What  right  had  he  to 
suppose  that  glorious  young  Betty,  who  had 
melted  away  from  his  presence  on  the  steps, 
leaving  him  in  the  chains  of  her  chattering 
mamma,  would  extend  to  him  so  sweet  an  act 
of  hospitality  as  this  ?  The  luscious  trumpets 
of  the  honeysuckle,  cream-colour  and  pink 
streaked  with  red,  that  had  but  just  yielded 
to  him  such  enchanting  perfume,  were  pushed 
ungraciously  out  of  the  way.  His  toilet  was 
half  complete  when,  over  in  the  belt  of  wood- 
land screening  the  main  road  along  which  he 
had  come,  Flower  heard  the  fanfare  of  a  hunt- 
ing-horn. Struggling  into  his  coat,  he  ran  to 
the  window  looking  out  upon  the  driveway, 
and  thence  saw  emerge  from  the  far  leafy 
screen,  and  wind  up  to  the  iron  gates,  thrown 
wide  for  their  reception,  a  party  of  gentlemen 
on  horseback,  attended  by  a  motley  crew  of 
negroes,  whippers-in,  and  hounds.  In  the  brill- 
iant light  of  the  evening  sun,  now  shining 
level  through  the  trees,  their  muddy  coats  be- 
tokened a  hard  run. 


26  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

At  their  approach,  it  was  as  if  an  enchanted 
castle  had  wakened  into  life.  The  still  man- 
sion broke  into  sound  and  movement.  Doors 
flew  open,  house-dogs  barked,  negroes,  little  and 
big,  sallied  forth  like  ants  from  a  hill.  At  the 
tail  of  the  huntsmen's  procession  followed  more 
negroes,  who,  their  day's  work  over,  lent  vol- 
ume to  the  joyful  clamour  of  the  hour.  Old 
white-wooled  patriarchs,  leaning  upon  their 
staffs  and  little  half-naked  children,  struggled 
after,  since  they  might  not  keep  up  with  the 
train.  When  the  huntsmen  finally  drew  rein 
on  the  gravel  before  the  hall  door,  they  were 
encircled  by  a  sable  ring  of  on-lookers,  flash- 
ing ivories,  bandying  jokes,  and  making  their 
comments  unchecked  and  unafraid. 

Colonel  Poythress,  first  to  touch  ground, 
stood  bareheaded  before  his  door,  shaking 
hands  in  formal  welcome  of  his  comrades  of 
the  day,  who,  according  to  custom,  were  now 
to  end  their  labours  of  the  chase  by  supping 
under  the  roof  of  one  of  their  party.  A  hale 
and  hearty  man  of  forty-odd,  with  a  deep  voice 
and  breezy  manner,  this  Virginian  squire  — 
born  in  the  Colony,  of  English  parents,  edu- 
cated at  Wakefield  school  in  Yorkshire,  and  at 
Oriel  College,  Oxford — betrayed  his  conditions 
of  birth  and  breeding  by  a  manner  courtly  yet 
devoid  of  insular  reserve. 

"  A  fine  figure  of  a  Provincial,"  meditated 
Flower.  "  It  needs  no  wizard  to  discern 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  27 

whence  came  the  good  looks  of  his  two 
daughters.  And,  great  Heaven !  how  much 
fitter  is  he  to  succeed  as  Lord  Avenel,  than 
his  measly  little  beggar  of  a  cousin,  my  lord's 
son,  who  stands  between  the  Virginian  and  the 
title.  Nor  does  he  look  like  one  who  would 
willingly  refuse  a  helping  hand  to  a  fine  young 
fellow  like  his  nephew  Rolfe." 

Flower's  further  musings  on  this  theme  were 
diverted  by  a  new  arrival  on  the  driveway  be- 
low him  of  apparently  a  couple  of  laggards  of 
the  band.  These  were  a  young  gentleman, 
stylishly  mounted  and  equipped,  accompany- 
ing a  soldierly-looking  older  man,  who,  spring- 
ing from  his  saddle  with  the  activity  of  a  boy, 
stood  taller,  more  majestic,  than  any  of  the 
group. 

"  You  must  have  rid  fast,  Colonel,"  observed 
his  host  to  the  latter  personage,  "  to  have  come 
up  with  us  already,  after  your  detour." 

"  We  took  but  the  time  needed  at  home  to 
make  our  excuses  in  person  to  our  dames," 
said  the  newcomer,  pleasantly.  "  And  for  the 
rest,  our  good  steeds  must  take  the  credit." 

Flower  did  not  tarry  in  recognising  his  din- 
ner acquaintance  of  New  York  the  year  before. 
Involuntarily,  a  sort  of  thrill  passed  through 
him,  of  homage  to  the  grandest  man  of  nat- 
ure's making  that  he  had  seen,  since  last  he 
had  set  eyes  on  Colonel  Washington. 

"If  you   please,   Captain,"  said    Keys,  de- 


28  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

murely,  in  the  young  man's  rear,  "you  are 
asked  by  the  mistress  to  present  yourself 
downstairs.  The  gentlemen'll  be  going  off 
now  to  clean  themselves;  there'll  be  rare  rub- 
bing and  brushing  of  cloth  and  leather,  and  a 
toddy  all  around  to  whet  the  appetite ;  and, 
after  that,  please  God,  short  work  with  the 
victuals  in  the  gentry's  dining-room." 

It  was  a  good-sized  hall,  rather  than  the 
ordinary  dining-chamber,  in  which  the  guests 
of  Colonel  and  Madam  Poythress  met  pres- 
ently for  supper.  The  rafters,  carved  door 
tops,  heavy  window  frames  and  floor,  were  of 
native  woods,  the  polished  furniture  of  pon- 
derous mahogany.  Around  the  walls  hung 
family  portraits  interspersed  with  antlers,  deer 
heads  and  fox  masks,  with  the  brushes  of 
many  a  Reynard  fallen  a  prize  to  the  Colo- 
nel's skill  and  daring  horsemanship.  To 
the  hall  proper  had  been  left  the  fowling- 
pieces,  whips,  fishing-rods,  and  other  numer- 
ous implements  of  a  sportsman's  craft. 

At  intervals  between  the  dames  and  cava- 
liers who  posed  and  simpered  in  their  frames, 
hung  beautiful  triple-branched  sconces  of  vir- 
gin silver,  each  with  its  spray  of  laurel  leaves, 
holding  candles  made  of  myrtle-berry  wax,  as 
did  also  the  silver  Corinthian  columns,  ranged 
upon  mantel-shelf  and  sideboard.  The  wide 
fireplace,  having  accomplished  its  winter  duty 
of  consuming  many  cords  of  crackling  hickory, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  29 

contained,  to-night,  a  brave  array  of  boughs 
of  honey-locust,  white  thorn,  smoke  tree,  and 
other  flowering  shrubs  of  the  season ;  India 
bowls  and  long-necked  glasses  stuffed  with 
garden  flowers,  being  elsewhere  disposed  about 
the  room.  The  decorations  had  been  the  task 
of  the  daughters  of  the  house,  now  re-enforced 
by  a  bevy  of  young  female  visitors ;  misses, 
severally  blonde,  brune,  tall,  short,  plump, 
slim,  merry,  or  sentimental,  who  appeared  to 
be  all  reckoned  as  scions  of  the  family  tree, 
and  to  have  been  engaged  in  taking  siestas  in 
preparation  for  the  evening's  gayety.  The 
entire  company  came  together  in  response  to 
the  gay  clangour  of  a  bell  rung  in  a  turret  be- 
side the  kitchen  door,  at  the  exact  moment 
when  the  chief  cook  felt  of  a  mind  to  serve 
the  banquet ! 

Upon  two  long  tables,  too  sturdy  of  make 
to  resent  any  weight  of  food  by  "  groaning " 
under  it,  were  spread,  upon  dishes  of  silver 
and  of  old  Canton  blue,  a  variety  of  fish,  flesh, 
and  fowl,  for  the  most  part  the  product  of  home 
raising  or  taking.  Hams,  turkeys,  fowls,  the 
chicken  pies  of  which  Madam  Poythress  held 
secret  the  inherited  recipe,  oysters,  crabs,  baked 
shad,  cutlets  of  sturgeon  with  cream-sauce,  vege- 
tables, pasties,  made  dishes,  a  mighty  round  of 
cold  spiced  beef,  fulfilled  to  the  amused  Flower 
the  ecstatic  prophecy  of  Keys. 

Awaiting  their  turn  upon  the  sideboard  stood 


jo  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

a  congeries  of  vessels  of  cut-glass,  enshrining 
such  sweets  as  floating  island,  jellies,  custards, 
syllabub,  jam  tarts,  iced  cakes,  and  preserves. 
Small  wonder  the  eyes  of  the  little  black-boys 
—  who,  when  not  engaged  in  abstractedly  offer- 
ing at  the  elbows  of  the  guests  hot  cakes  of 
wheaten  flour  or  corn-meal,  remained  in  a  dado 
around  the  lower  wall  —  goggled  incessantly 
with  joy ! 

To  quench  the  abundant  thirst  of  the  rev- 
ellers .were  passed  flagons  of  ale  and  home- 
pressed  cider,  while  Madeira  and  Bordeaux 
circled  in  dusty  bottles;  and  in  front  of  madam 
the  hostess,  who  in  her  smart  gown  of  scarlet 
satin  flowered  tabby  with  ruffles  and  cap  of 
Brussels  lace,  looked  —  and  knew  it  —  like  an 
expanded  elder  sister  of  her  girls  —  stood  a  tall 
Grecian  urn  of  silver,  containing  coffee.  Such 
was  a  tide-water  hunt-supper  of  the  period ; 
and  in  this  instance,  the  homely  plenty  was 
enhanced,  at  the  outset  of  the  feast,  by  high 
spirits  and  a  lively  interchange  of  wit. 

Flower,  who,  by  some  happy  shuffling  of  the 
cards,  found  himself  placed  next  to  Miss  Betty, 
was  struck  dumb  by  the  girl's  imperial  beauty. 
Her  bronzed  hair,  turned  back  over  a  roll  from 
her  forehead,  was  adorned  behind  one  tiny  ear 
with  a  crimson  rose  set  in  its  own  green  leaves. 
Her  white  throat  was  a  column  clasped  with 
pearls.  The  shoulders  issuing  from  the  Mech- 
lin ruffles  of  her  low-cut  azure  gown  revealed 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  31 

curves  and  texture  of  unrivalled  loveliness.  In 
her  eyes,  and  upon  her  smiling  mouth,  he  dis- 
cerned—  or  thought  he  did  —  every  grace 
wedded  to  every  virtue  known  to  womanhood. 
And  as  he  and  she,  both  young  and  handsome 
and  elate,  wavered  together,  talked  in  low  tones, 
exchanged  confidences,  the  aroma  of  her  youth, 
the  music  of  her  voice,  finished  the  captivation 
her  beauty  had  begun.  From  his  seat  far  away 
down  at  the  end  of  the  other  table,  where  cer- 
tain shy  squires  and  poor  relations  had  seemed 
naturally  to  gravitate  together,  Rolfe  saw  and 
took  heed  of  a  state  of  things,  to  which  he  was 
at  least  reasonably  well  accustomed.  What- 
ever might  have  been  its  effect  upon  the  imagi- 
nation of  a  hopeless  lover,  the  company  at 
large  regarded  as  a  foregone  conclusion  this 
little  side-show  between  Miss  Betty  and  the 
handsome  Englishman.  They  would  have 
considered  it  something  abnormal  had  not  their 
champion  belle  set  out  at  once  to  make  a  slave 
of  an  entirely  new  young  man.  That  Geoffry's 
heart  would  go  upon  Betty's  string  was  as  much 
a  matter  of  course,  as  that  gory  scalps  should 
have  adorned  the  tent  poles  of  Betty's  ances- 
tors !  The  consolidated  neighbourhood  would, 
in  short,  have  considered  itself  defrauded  of  a 
prerogative,  had  not  Miss  Poythress  come  into 
her  own. 

At  the  right  hand  of  Madam  Poythress  sat, 
of  course,   her  distinguished   neighbour   from 


32  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Mount  Vernon.  The  seat  on  Colonel  Wash- 
ington's other  side  was  occupied  by  a  little  lady 
in  white  muslin  with  a  cherry  top-knot,  who 
turned  on  her  tall  comrade  the  looks  bestowed 
by  the  sunflower  upon  the  sun.  So  far  in 
Matoaca's  short  life,  she  had  always  arrogated 
to  herself  especial  possession  of  her  hero  when 
at  their  house,  where  it  was  a  thing  understood 
that  she  was  wanted  to  bear  the  Colonel  com- 
pany. While  she  prattled  in  his  ear  about  the 
farms,  the  gardens,  the  black  people,  the  stock 
and  poultry-yards  of  Mount  Vernon  and  Vue 
de  1'Eau,  from  his  lips  and  eyes  the  spirit  of 
tender  tolerance  for  her  petty  chronicles  of 
rural  life  was  never  absent.  Madam  Poy- 
thress,  who  was  generally  subdued  by  Colonel 
Washington's  reserve,  and  Miss  Betty,  who  of 
him  alone  in  all  her  world  felt  a  little  bit  afraid, 
often  owned  themselves  relieved  when,  their 
duty  to  the  great  man  of  the  neighbourhood 
fulfilled,  they  could  leave  him  to  be  entertained 
by  May. 

On  the  present  occasion,  Madam  Poythress 
came  even  sooner  than  usual  to  the  end  of  her 
conversational  tether  with  the  Colonel.  So  ab- 
stracted, preoccupied,  was  he,  that  she  found 
herself  pitying  her  "  poor,  dear  friend  Martha, 
that  was  condemned  to  sit  at  meat  three  hun- 
dred and  sixty-five  times  a  year,  opposite  so 
glum  a  countenance."  Even  May  failed,  to- 
night, to  win  from  him  more  than  a  grave  smile 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  33 

or  an  indulgent  monosyllable,  —  till,  at  last, 
the  young  girl,  with  tactful  sympathy,  forbore 
to  talk,  and  contented  herself  with  watching  that 
his  plate  was  well  supplied  with  all  the  dainties 
on  the  board. 

As  Madam  Poythress  surveyed  her  liberal 
feast,  secretly  conscious  that  no  woman  in  the 
neighbourhood  could  have  set  a  hunt-supper  to 
equal  it,  she  became  aware  that  others  beside 
Colonel  Washington  were  passing  under  the 
influence  of  some  spell  of  anxiety  or  care. 
Faces,  ordinarily  as  cheerful  as  they  were  famil- 
iar, showed  the  strain  of  trying  to  keep  up 
pleasant  table  talk.  Their  appetites  satisfied, 
her  guests,  with  one  accord,  had  relapsed  into 
duets  of  conversation  of  an  evidently  depress- 
ing character.  It  must  be  —  it  could  be  noth- 
ing else,  but  Madam  Poythress*  bete-noire  — 
those  tiresome  politics ! 

She  glanced  at  the  other  table,  presided  over 
by  her  faithful  henchman,  the  tutor,  Mr.  Nim- 
rod  Snow,  a  lively  dried-up  little  gentleman, 
always  to  be  depended  on  to  crack  jokes,  tell 
stories,  or  sing  songs  in  a  sweet  wire-drawn 
tenor  voice,  when  it  was  desirable  to  make  a 
party  "go."  But  even  Snow  (a  devoted  son  of 
the  mother-country,  who,  having  for  some 
years  taught  the  Colonial  young  idea  to  shoot, 
looked  forward  to  soon  going  home  to  take 
orders  in  the  Church)  wore  a  perturbed  coun- 
tenance, and  was  engaged  in  hot  discussion  with 


34  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Mr.  Ffoliot,  a  taciturn  squire,  upon  a  theme 
surely  political,  since  Mr.  Ffoliot  knew  how  to 
talk  nothing  else  ! 

Turning  her  eyes  back  to  her  own  table, 
upon  another  one  of  her  stand-bys,  Parson 
Thorowgood,  she  beheld  his  kindly  reverence 
(after  a  day's  hunt,  and  a  bottle  of  claret, 
always  at  his  best,  socially)  actually  scowling 
at  one  of  his  church-wardens,  who  was  declaim- 
ing with  vigour  upon  some  point  in  which  the 
Parson  plainly  differed  with  him.  Straining 
her  ears  to  listen,  Madam  Poythress  caught, 
passing  between  them,  the  ominous  words : 
"  Taxes,"  "  Stamp  Act,"  "  Resistance,"  that  to 
her  were  as  red  rags  to  a  bull ! 

It  was  too  vexatious  !  What  a  return  to  a 
hard-worked  hostess,  resting  upon  her  laurels 
after  a  week's  preparation  for  this  party  that 
was  meant  to  be  as  gay  as  the  edibles  were 
toothsome !  Worse  than  all,  the  sweets,  in 
shaking  pyramids,  in  frothing  bowls,  in  frosted 
shapes,  were  now  passing  from  elbow  to  elbow 
almost  unnoticed.  Not  so  much  as  a  glance 
at  the  works  of  art  among  them ;  not  a  note 
mentally  taken  to  be  transmitted  to  an  enquir- 
ing spouse  at  home.  Madam  Poythress,  in  her 
heart,  did  not  know  whether  to  cry  "  Deuce 
take  all  politics ! "  or  "  Deuce  take  these 
men ! " 

Quite  out  of  patience,  she  had  again  recourse 
to  the  silent  neighbour  on  her  right. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  35 

"  Politics  !  Politics  !  "  she  said,  with  a  girl- 
ish pout ;  "  I'll  vow,  Colonel,  you  seem  to  be 
the  only  man  in  the  room  who  is  not  bothering 
about  this  eternal  question  of  submission  to 
the  taxes.  Don't  you  agree  with  me  that  they 
are  pushing  it  too  far  ?  Surely  it  is  a  sad, 
needless  worry  for  our  Virginian  gentlemen  to 
take  upon  themselves." 

"  I  would  to  God  it  were  needless,  madam," 
answered  Washington,  a  sudden  fire  gleaming 
in  his  eye. 

"  But  why,  pray,  can't  we  go  on  as  we've 
been  doing  all  along,  and  leave  such  vexed 
questions  to  posterity  to  settle  ?  " 

This  enquiry,  made  during  one  of  these  lulls 
occurring  sometimes  in  the  conversation  of  a 
large  mixed  company,  that  spread  as  if  by 
general  consent,  was  heard  by  many.  Instinc- 
tively all  eyes  turned  to  the  personage  addressed, 
and  there  was  silence  when  he  answered. 

"  Because,  madam,"  came  in  the  familiar 
tones  on  which  those  present  had  grown  to 
depend  for  counsel,  —  tones  unshaken  by  pas- 
sion, yet  in  this  instance  fraught  with  passion- 
ate conviction,  —  "  we  have  no  alternative. 
Either  we  Colonists  must  now  assert  our  rights, 
or  we  must  submit  to  every  imposition  that 
can  be  helped  upon  us,  till  custom  and  use 
shall  make  us  tame  and  abject  slaves  like  the 
blacks  we  rule  over." 

The  effect  of  this  was  remarkable.     It  was 


36  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

as  if  an  electric  shock  had  flashed  around  the 
board.  Men,  with  kindling  faces,  stirred  un- 
easily in  their  chairs.  Simultaneously,  Hugh 
Poythress,  the  Parson,  Mr.  Snow,  one  or  two 
neighbours  of  Tory  proclivities,  and  Captain 
GeofFry  Flower,  sprang  to  their  feet. 

The  host,  first  to  recover  his  self-control, 
dropped  upon  his  chair — an  example  followed 
by  the  others.  Then,  after  orders  to  the  ser- 
vants behind  him,  who  quickly  dispersed  to  cir- 
culate with  fresh  bottles  of  Burgundy,  Colonel 
Poythress  arose  again,  and,  brimming  glass  in 
hand,  stood  in  stately  fashion  before  his  guests. 

"  Fill  your  glasses,  ladies  and  gentlemen,"  he 
said,  with  admirable  grace  ;  "  I  give  you  c  His 
Majesty,  the  King/  " 

"  His  Majesty,  the  King,"  echoed  the  quiet 
voice  of  Washington.  And  up  in  the  rafters, 
swelled  by  a  score  of  stalwart  throats,  rang  the 
hearty  toast  "  To  his  Majesty,  the  King." 


II 


THE  drawing-room  of  Vue  de  TEau  was 
a   long,  sweet-smelling  apartment,  made 
cheerful  by  freshly  calendered  chintz,  dis- 
playing a  pattern  of  blue  passion-flowers  and 
crimson  cockatoos ;  by  white  wood-work  with 
an  egg-shell  glaze ;    and  by  windows  opening 
upon  the  lawn.       In  two  corners,  cut  off  by 
cupboards,  were  seen  shelves 

"  Piled  with  a  dapper  Dresden  world, 

Beaux,  beauties,  prayers,  and  poses, 
Bronzes  with  squat  legs  undercurled, 
And  great  jars  filled  with  roses." 

For  Madam  Poythress,  never  behindhand 
in  the  acquirement  of  reigning  fashions,  had, 
on  her  last  visit  to  London,  left  with  her 
agent  there  a  liberal  order  for  the  transmission 
of  ceramic  treasures  and  other  foreign  oddities 
across  the  sea.  On  either  side  of  the  reddened 
hearth  with  its  urn-shaped  fire-dogs,  stood  two 
tall  Chinese  "  dragon  "  vases  of  green  and  gold, 
now  filled  with  boughs  of  dogwood  and  pome- 
granate. These  tokens  were  a  recent  offering 
to  the  Madam's  good  will  "presented  with  the 

37 


38  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

humble  duty  of  her  servant,"  the  master  of  a 
Poythress  tobacco-ship,  The  Fair  American, 
who  had  "picked  them  up"  on  the  wharf  in 
London,  from  one  of  his  brotherhood  returned 
from  Cathay.  Upon  an  island  of  crimson 
Turkey  carpet  in  a  sea  of  beeswaxed  oak, 
stood  a  centre-table  of  Dutch  inlay-work,  an 
object  much  talked  of  in  Fairfax  County, 
where  most  housewives  were  content  with 
plain  mahogany  ;  and,  mathematically  arranged, 
around  the  wainscoting  were  chairs,  sofas,  and 
a  harpsichord,  their  prim  ranks  rarely  broken. 

Here,  under  the  soft  light  of  lamps  and 
candles,  assembled  a  cluster  of  ladies,  who  were 
endeavouring  to  pass  the  hour  after  supper  dur- 
ing which  the  forsaken  gentlemen  solaced 
their  loneliness  with  a  steaming  bowl  of  punch. 
As  is  usual  under  these  circumstances,  the  fair 
ones  had  begun  by  expanding  as  if  with  relief 
at  freedom  from  masculine  society.  Then  fol- 
lowed a  talk  in  unison  about  the  individual 
experiences  of  each  lady  with  her  comrade  of 
the  feast ;  tiring  of  which,  the  high  spirits  of 
the  party  seemed  to  suddenly  go  down.  They 
fell  away  in  pairs,  looked  at  the  puzzle-cards, 
turned  over  music,  strummed  on  the  harpsi- 
chord ;  and,  finally  coming  together  like  a  flock 
of  swans,  beset  Madam  Poythress  to  tell  them 
about  the  newly  arrived  guest. 

This,  their  hostess,  a  trifle  of  knitting  in 
her  white  hands,  was  in  nowise  averse  to  do. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          39 

It  gave  her  an  opportunity  to  mount  upon  her 
favourite  high  horse,  the  English  aristocracy,  in 
general,  her  own  share  of  it  in  particular,  and, 
incidentally,  that  pretty  fellow,  Captain  Geoffry 
Flower. 

Madam  Poythress  was  accustomed  to  have 
her  oracles  on  these  and  kindred  subjects  re- 
ceived with  attention  and  respect ;  and  the  only 
person  present  who  appeared  now  indifferent 
to  what  she  had  to  say,  was  Miss  Betty,  who, 
sitting  apart,  her  curled  eyelashes  drooping 
upon  her  cheeks,  looked  as  though  the  paste 
buckle  upon  her  red-heeled  shoe  were  the  only 
object  worth  notice  in  the  world. 

"  No  blood  relative,  my  dears,"  said  the  good 
lady.  "  We  have  been  expecting  a  visit  from 
him  ever  since  my  Lord  Dunmore  was  so 
obliging  as  to  acquaint  us  with  his  arrival  in 
the  Colony,  and  of  his  amiable  disposition 
toward  his  kin.  But  at  this,  we  can  hardly  be 
surprised.  One  may  depend  upon  a  man 
familiar  with  court-circles  to  appreciate  those 
who  have  mixed  freely  in  them." 

"  And  what  is  his  connection  with  the  Vir- 
ginian Poythresses  ? "  asked  a  cousin,  politely 
curious. 

"  Oh  !  my  dear,  as  I  said,  there  is  no  tie  of 
blood.  He  is  a  nephew,  —  by  marriage,  —  and 
was  a  ward,  of  my  husband's  cousin,  the  Earl ; 
and,  naturally,  Captain  Flower  would  wish  to 
pay  his  respects  to  the  next  heir  (after  my 


40  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

lord's  only  son)  of  the  title  and  estates  of 
Avenel." 

All  the  Province  knew  that  inimitable  toss 
of  Madam  Poythress'  head  when  she  brought 
in  the  next  heir  to  the  title  and  estates  of 
Avenel. 

"  Tell  us  the  whole  story,  Cousin  Bess," 
said  a  certain  dimpled  Miss  Dolly,  nestling 
upon  a  tabouret  at  Madam  Poythress'  feet. 
"  Begin  with  how  the  Poythresses  came  to 
leave  England." 

"  As  if  everybody  in  the  Colony  had  not 
heard  that  ! "  smiled  the  lady.  "  People  of 
our  position  have  to  bear  the  penalty  of  having 
their  family  affairs  discussed." 

"  But  it  is  so  long  since  you  have  told  us," 
protested  Miss  Dolly.  "And  'tis  only  you 
who  tell  it  properly." 

"  Truly,  my  dear,  if  it  were  not  for  me,  what 
with  Betty  absorbed  with  her  beaux  and  fin- 
eries, and  the  Colonel  and  Hughey  and  Matoaca 
so  sadly  indifferent  to  keeping  up  the  family 
credit,  I  don't  know  who  there  would  be  to 
have  an  eye  upon  our  interests.  Why,  I 
hardly  think  my  husband  would  know  it,  were 
a  wise  Providence  to  remove  the  present  heir- 
apparent  from  this  troubled  world.  There  has 
never  been  any  one  to  dispute,  I  presume,  that 
the  family  of  my  children's  papa  is  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  honourable  on  English  soil ; 
although  the  title  is  but  a  little  prior  to  King 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  41 

James.  My  husband's  father,  the  first  Colonel 
Hugh  Poythress  —  who  built  this  house,  and 
was  President  of  the  King's  Council  when  he 
died  —  was  in  youth  a  bold,  adventurous  fellow. 
When  scarce  older  than  my  own  Hughey,  he 
sailed  midshipman  in  one  of  the  ships  sent  to 
aid  my  Lord  Peterborough  in  his  siege  of 
Barcelona,  that  was  to  put  the  Archduke  of 
Austria  upon  the  throne  of  Spain.  After  the 
splendid  siege  of  the  fortress  of  Monjuich  —  " 

"  For  pity's  sake,  mamma,"  interrupted 
Betty,  stopping  a  little  yawn  by  the  insertion 
of  a  bead  of  her  pearl  necklace  between  her 
lips,  "let  us  be  excused  from  the  siege  of 
Monjuich.  And  indeed  Dolly  is  just  pretend- 
ing she  wants  to  hear  our  family  by-gones." 

Dolly  protested  against  this  injustice.  Madam 
Poythress,  disagreeably  fluttered,  resumed  her 
subject,  hurriedly. 

"  The  children's  grandpapa,  after  fighting 
and  roving  in  many  lands,  came  to  Virginia, 
bringing  a  bride  whom  he  had  married  in  the 
Bahama  Islands  —  the  beautiful  daughter  of  an 
English  army  officer,  who  was  stationed  there. 
Betty  is  wearing  the  pearls  presented  to  Mrs. 
Poythress  by  her  spouse  upon  the  occasion  of 
their  nuptials." 

"  And  Betty  is  like  her  as  two  peas,"  said 
a  lively  damsel,  directing  attention  to  a  long- 
throated,  dove-eyed  dame  in  a  frame  above  the 
mantel-piece. 


42  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"So  Betty  flatters  herself,"  said  Madam 
Poythress,  giving  a  Roland  for  her  daughter's 
Oliver.  "  And  here  on  the  Potomac,  Colonel 
Poythress  pitched  upon  this  estate.  He  pros- 
pered continually,  and  his  son  has  done  the 
same,  after  him,  thank  God.  But  the  family 
in  England  have  pretty  much  died  out,  except- 
ing Lord  Avenel,  who  represents  the  main 
branch.  He  was  after  my  husband  at  Oriel 
College,  but  they  never  made  fair  acquaintance, 
till  our  last  visit  to  England,  when  we  were 
guests  at  Avenel,  and  the  recipients  of  many 
courtesies." 

"  Bah  !  it  gives  me  the  shivers  to  think  of 
the  damp  old  place,"  cried  Betty.  "  The 
woods  around  it  so  thick  with  ivy  and  moss 
that  the  boughs  dripped  water.  And  that  dis- 
mal old  church  full  of  dead  Avenels,  and 
memorial  tablets.  A  woman  with  a  grain  of 
spirit  might  have  made  the  Castle  a  pleasant 
enough  home;  but  my  lady  Dead  Letter  — 
not  she ! " 

"  Lady  Avenel  is  indeed  a  poor  meek-spirited 
woman,  that  makes  no  more  show  than  a  mouse 
in  her  grand  castle,"  admitted  Madam  Poy- 
thress. 

"The  three  days  we  spent  there,  were  a 
nightmare,"  said  candid  Betty.  "  She,  fright- 
ened to  death,  and  he,  glum  and  short  spoken 
—  though  I  have  personally  no  reason  to  com- 
plain of  his  want  of  civility." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  43 

"  That  have  you  not,"  answered  her  mother. 
"  Avenel  made  as  much  of  you  as  'twas  in  the 
poor,  dyspeptic,  thin-blooded  creature  to  make 
of  any  one.  As  to  the  son,  no  one  gets  sight 
of  him,  for  he  is  abroad  with  his  governor  and 
the  keepers  all  day  in  the  forest.  'Twas  whis- 
pered me,  on  good  authority,"  she  added,  thus 
exposing  the  chink-hole  through  which  pro- 
spective glory  gleamed  upon  her  path  of  every 
day,  "  that  this  course  of  life  is  the  only  one 
by  which  the  physicians  could  hope  to  keep 
the  unfortunate  lad  alive." 

"  Then  I  hope  you'll  some  day  be  Countess 
of  Avenel,  Cousin  Bess,  and  that  you'll  ask  us 
all  over  there  to  stop  with  you  ! "  cried  one  of 
the  girls. 

"  Perhaps  by  that  time  Betty  will  be  married 
to  a  Duke,"  exclaimed  another;  "and  you'll 
dispose  of  us  to  baronets  and  knights  !  But 
give  Dolly  only  an  Honourable,  please." 

A  gurgle  of  young  laughter  filled  the  room. 

The  door  at  this  moment  opening,  another 
and  emphatic  diversion  of  the  conversation  was 
effected.  A  negro  in  livery  came  in,  carrying 
a  small  slender-legged  table,  which,  with  the 
true  African  flourish  of  importance,  he  set  down 
before  his  mistress.  Following  him,  appeared 
the  butler,  Cupid,  with  a  tray  containing  that 
now  unwonted  spectacle  in  the  Colony,  a  tea- 
service.  Bringing  up  the  procession,  marched 
a  white  woman  of  middle  age,  with  a  pallid 


44  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

complexion  and  eyes  that  seemed  ever  to  seek 
the  ground.  This  was  Judith,  the  housekeeper, 
to  whom  were  entrusted  the  key  and  care  of  a 
tea-caddy  of  massive  silver,  richly  chased,  which 
she  now  bore  before  her  with  a  certain  air  of 
majesty. 

Madam  Poythress,  affecting  to  regard  the 
preparations  in  question  as  a  matter  of  every 
day,  but  showing  in  her  voice  a  trace  of  inward 
agitation,  hastened  to  say  the  first  thing  that 
came  into  her  head. 

"Captain  Flower — yes,  he  is  handsome  and 
well  mannered,  truly.  But  only  a  younger  son 
of  the  late  Sir  Geoffry,  whose  heir,  Sir  Thomas 
Flower,  has  a  fine  houseful  of  young  children. 
Sir  GeofFry  Flower  was  the  near  neighbour  of 
our  cousin,  Lord  Avenel.  Why,  Judith,  Judith, 
woman,  what  ails  you  to  be  so  careless  ? " 

For,  at  this  juncture,  the  precious  tea-caddy, 
to  which  all  eyes  in  the  room  were  turning  with 
varied  expressions,  had  slipped  from  the  house- 
keeper's shaking  hands,  and  rolled  across  the 
bare  floor  with  a  hard  metallic  clatter.  Mrs. 
Judith,  making  haste  to  pick  up  the  treasured 
casket,  begged  humble  pardon  of  her  mistress 
for  her  awkwardness,  and  was  then  desired  to 
measure  out  with  a  silver  scoop  the  quantity 
of  the  fragrant  herb  needful  for  a  large  brewing. 

"  And  you,  Cupid,"  said  the  hostess,  turning 
to  her  factotum,  with  intrepidity,  "  go  to  the 
dining-room  and  say,  with  my  compliments  to 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  45 

your  master  and  the  gentlemen,  that  the  ladies 
request  the  honour  of  their  company,  to  join 
them  in  a  cup  of  tea." 

Now  ensued  a  scene  hardly  to  be  compre- 
hended in  connection  with  a  peaceful  rite  hon- 
oured in  observance  by  generations  of  woman- 
kind. Captain  Flower,  who,  first  of  the  lingerers 
in  the  supper  room  to  show  what  they  called  "  a 
disposition  to  the  sex,"  had  been  strolling  alone 
in  the  fresh  air  of  the  lawn  outside,  entered  the 
drawing-room  just  in  time  to  behold  a  move- 
ment among  the  ladies,  as  of  birds  about  to  take 
their  flight.  Some  were  red,  others  pale,  the 
hostess  was  undeniably  fluttered,  all  wore  a  look 
of  timorous  excitement.  Miss  Betty  alone,  who 
at  the  Captain's  approach  had  roused  from  her 
languor,  and  now  sat  upright  and  self-possessed, 
bestowed  a  little  mocking  smile  upon  the  scene. 

There  was  a  pause  of  indecision,  no  one 
wishing  to  offend  or  defy  Madam  Poythress  by 
speaking  out  what  was  in  her  mind.  It  was 
left  to  Matoaca  to  make  patriotic  protest. 
This  little  maiden,  who  because  of  her  tender 
years  was  not  yet  admitted  to  full  share  of 
social  interchange  upon  occasions  of  formal 
hospitality,  had  been  sitting  under  a  lamp  in  a 
corner,  poring  over  a  volume  of  Ossian's  poetry 
—  the  great  hound,  Jupiter,  stretching  his  mas- 
sive bulk  supine  across  her  feet.  She  had  not 
been  aware  of  the  proceedings  agitating  her 
mother's  little  kingdom,  until  the  fall  of  the 


46  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

tea-caddy  had  caused  her  to  look  up.  Then, 
for  a  brief  instant  only,  May  hesitated,  till  the 
order  given  to  Cupid  precipitated  her  resolve. 
With  flashing  eyes,  with  a  trembling  voice,  she 
sprang,  the  hound  after  her,  across  the  room  ; 
and,  laying  an  arresting  hand  upon  the  arm  of 
the  housekeeper,  who  was  in  the  act  of  pouring 
boiling  water  into  the  teapot,  she  cried:  — 

"Stop,  Judith!  Mamma,  mamma,  you  don't 
—  you  can't  mean  it.  It  must  not  be  we  Poy- 
thresses  who  shall  do  this  thing,  now  !  Why, 
the  whole  Province  will  cry  shame  on  us  ! " 

Madam  Poythress,  a  small  woman,  seemed 
in  that  moment  to  grow  to  an  awful  height. 

"And  pray,  madam,"  she  said,  addressing 
the  interloper  with  crushing  sarcasm,  "who  are 
you,  to  dictate  to  your  mother  upon  such  a 
point  ?  It  is  an  age,  methinks,  when  children 
and  inferiors  rise  against  all  authority  !  What ! 
renounce,  in  my  own  house,  the  service  of  a 
simple  refreshment  from  my  own  private  stores, 
because,  forsooth,  certain  silly  people  cry  out 
against  it  as  a  symbol  of  fancied  oppression ! 
Go  to  your  room,  Matoaca,  whence  you  had 
better  not  have  come,  if  'twere  but  to  treat 
our  guests  to  such  an  hysteric  outburst.  And 
do  you,  Judith,  as  I  bid  you !  Make  the  tea ! " 

The  poor  little  routed  champion,  bursting 
into  tears,  fled  from  the  room.  Flower,  admir- 
ing her  spirit,  had  to  resist  an  impulse  to  go 
after  and  console  her — an  emotion  soon  for- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  47 

gotten,  in  the  proffer  of  a  cup  of  tea  from  the 
hands  of  her  radiant  sister. 

The  delicious  fumes  of  the  disputed  beverage 
were,  however,  scarce  exhaled  into  the  air, 
when  a  depressing  influence  seemed  to  fall 
upon  the  company,  all,  in  turn,  falling  away 
from  around  the  tea-board.  One  lady  took 
nothing  after  supper,  another  feared  that  the 
drink  might  rob  her  of  her  beauty-sleep ; 
others  asked  leave  to  retire  to  the  terrace  with- 
out, in  order  not  to  miss  the  fine  effect  of  the 
moon  upon  the  water.  Madam  Poythress 
stood  by  her  guns  bravely,  until  her  hope- 
ful, Master  Hughey,  bursting  into  the  room 
with  boyish  glee  at  the  situation,  bore  her  a 
message  from  his  sire. 

"  They  sent  me,  because  nobody  else  would 
come,"  he  said  frankly.  "  Old  Snow  was  to  do 
it,  but  he  flunked,  and  there  wasn't  a  servant 
to  be  found.  As  soon  as  ever  our  neighbours 
heard  about  the  tea,  there  was  a  regular  clear- 
ing-out, all  the  men  calling  for  their  horses 
and  making  pretty  speeches  of  excuse.  By  now, 
there  isn't  a  man  Jack  left  of 'em,  excepting 
the  Parson,  and  even  he  says  Mrs.  Thorow- 
good  will  be  expecting  him  at  home." 

"  And  why  are  you  not  in  bed,  sir  ?  "  asked 
the  lady,  changing  the  subject  while  she  bit 
her  lips  with  vexation.  "  If  I  have  asked  your 
papa  once,  I  have  asked  him  a  hundred  times, 
not  to  encourage  this  habit  of  yours  of  sitting 


48  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

up  o'  nights.  Hughey,  darling,  tell  me  —  why 
didn't  he  —  your  father  —  come  himself  to  bear 
the  excuses  of  those  gentlemen." 

"  By  George,  ma'am,  because  he  was  afraid," 
blurted  the  boy,  rewarded  by  a  cuff  upon  the 
ear,  which  did  not,  however,  appear  to  cause 
much  bodily  discomfort. 

Long  after  the  ladies  had  gone  to  their 
rooms,  Geoffry  sat  alone  with  his  host,  smok- 
ing the  famous  Vue  de  PEau  tobacco.  As 
they  were  settling  down  to  this  symposium, 
Rolfe,  who  had  devoted  this  evening  hour  to  a 
sitting  with  Mr.  Nimrod  Snow,  came  in  for  a 
moment  to  make  some  enquiry  regarding  the 
arrangements  of  horses  for  the  morrow. 

"  Grey  Caesar  for  the  Captain ;  and  you  will 
ride  Diabolus,  my  boy,"  said  the  Colonel, 
heartily.  cc  Indeed,  I  begin  to  feel  he  is  safe 
under  your  hand  only  ;  and  if  there  were  any 
such  good  news  ahead  of  me  as  that  you  were 
to  join  the  army,  he  should  be  yours  for  good 
and  all.  Nay,  Rolfe,  that  was  a  shaft  you  do 
not  merit,  and  I  ask  your  pardon.  I  suppose, 
Captain,"  added  the  master,  as  the  youth 
withdrew,  "  if  any  one  at  Williamsburg  has 
talked  to  you  of  our  affairs,  you  know  that 
this  lad  who  has  just  left  us  is  the  son  of  my 
late  brother  Richard;  but,  as  gossip  often  mis- 
states facts,  you  may  possibly  wonder  at  the 
position  he  is  about  to  take  in  the  world." 

Flower,  conscious  that  this  problem  had  been 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


49 


knocking  at  his  brain  for  solution,,  made  some 
ambiguous  answer,  that  might  have  meant  any- 
thing. 

"'Tis  a  sore  vexation  to  me,"  went  on  the 
Colonel.  "  A  sore  vexation,  and  disappoint- 
ment. Every  family  has  its  skeleton,  and  ours 
is  no  exception.  My  brother  Dick  was  a  wild 
blade,  and  every  penny  he  could  lay  hands 
upon  was  wasted  in  gaming,  cock-fighting,  and 
roistering.  At  last,  my  father  cut  him  out  of 
his  will,  and  gave  him  notice  of  the  fact. 
Then,  Dick  disappeared  up  into  the  frontier 
country,  and  when  we  next  heard  of  him''  — 
the  stout  Colonel  paused,  gulped,  and  his  voice 
broke  —  "  he  was  dead,  sir,  killed  in  defending 
a  border-settlement  against  an  Indian  raid.  He 
fought  bravely,  and  died  worthy  of  his  race, 
Captain  ;  and  for  that,  Heaven  knows,  I  am 
thankful.  It  was  some  years  afterwards,  before 
I  heard  that  Dick  had  left  a  widow  —  a  distant 
kinswoman  of  my  own  wife's,  by  the  way, 
whose  family  had  settled  in  those  parts  —  and 
that  there  was  a  son.  As  soon  as  practicable,  I 
set  out  on  horseback  and  rode  for  many  miles 
through  the  wilderness.  To  make  a  long  story 
short,  I  found  the  lady,  sir,  and  this  boy  Rolfe, 
living  in  little  better  than  a  hunter's  lodge  — 
he  sleeping  at  night  on  a  bear-skin  stretched 
on  the  boards  beside  her  bed ;  she  half  melan- 
choly mad,  lamenting  her  lost  husband  and 
about  quitting  the  place  he  died  in,  listening 


50  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

to  no  reason  ;  and  her  bachelor  twin  brothers 
(who  had  gone  there  to  live  with  her)  as  obsti- 
nate. Except  that  these  two  were  educated  men 
and  book-lovers,  with  actually  a  couple  of 
shelves  of  classics  on  their  walls,  and  were  en- 
gaged in  giving  daily  lessons  to  the  boy,  I 
should  have  quite  despaired  of  him.  Worse 
than  all,  the  mother  would  accept  of  no  offer 
of  assistance  from  me  for  his  future.  They 
had  a  small  fund  laid  aside,  with  which  it  was 
the  intention  of  the  three  to  pay  Rolfe's  way 
into  college.  As  to  allowing  him  to  visit  us, 
that  was  not  to  be  thought  of.  Imagine  such 
a  state  of  things  for  my  only  brother's  son,  and 
think  what  the  boy  has  had  to  overcome,  to  be 
what  he  now  is  !  Since  Rolfe  began  his  col- 
lege course,  he  has,  however,  been  frequently 
our  guest.  I'll  tell  you  candidly,  Captain,  I 
have  put  Rolfe  down  in  my  will  for  my 
brother's  portion  of  our  father's  estate,  and 
I'm  ready  to  do  anything  else  in  reason  for  the 
boy.  But,  by  Jove  !  there  is  one  thing  I  will 
not  do.  Face  that  woman  again !  Not  the 
devil  himself  could  force  me  to  it." 

"  I  wonder  Rolfe,  who  has  courage  and  spirit 
for  anything,  if  one  may  depend  upon  his  face, 
doesn't  assert  himself,  and  decide  his  own 


career." 


"  Another  folly.  A  promise,  extorted  from 
him  when  a  little  boy,  never  to  leave  her," 
said  the  splenetic  Colonel.  "  As  long  as  she 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


lives,  he  will  be  her  victim.  This  pedagogue 
business  is  the  first  result.  But,  come,  Cap- 
tain, this  is  poor  entertainment  for  my  visitor 
on  his  first  night  beneath  my  roof.  Let  us 
change  once  more  our  subject  of  discourse. 
My  Cousin  Avenel,  for  example.  What  have 
you  heard  from  or  of  him,  latterly  ? " 

"  I  must  own  to  you,  sir,  that  I  avoid  hear- 
ing of  him  as  much  as  possible,"  said  Geoffry, 
laughing.  "In  later  days  he  has  been  a  con- 
firmed hypochondriac,  keeping  his  library  and 
not  so  much  as  holding  speech  with  my  aunt's 
successor,  his  unfortunate  Countess,  who  has 
ever  been  of  the  meek  pattern  of  female, 
trampled  upon  and  not  resisting." 

"A  pattern  that  does  not  flourish  in  our 
Colony,"  rejoined  the  Colonel,  with  a  shrug 
and  a  jolly  laugh.  "But  the  son  —  he  is,  I 
hope,  improving  in  quality  with  age." 

"  A  boy  of  mean  tastes,  and  estranged  from 
the  father,  who  cannot  endure  him  in  his  sight," 
answered  the  soldier.  "  But  I  am  ashamed  ! 
You  see,  although  Lord  Avenel  is  my  uncle 
and  was  my  guardian,  there  has  never  been 
any  love  lost  between  us.  And  now,  since 
the  occupancy  of  the  Castle  is  divided  be- 
tween a  dull  hypochondriac,  a  kill-joy  woman, 
and  that  cub,  there  is  less  than  ever  to  tempt 
me  there." 

"  Pity  his  brother  Percy  had  not  married  and 
left  an  heir,"  said  the  Colonel.  "  I  visited 


52  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Avenel  in  his  time,  more  than  once,  while  I 
was  at  Oxford,  and  I  remember  him  gratefully. 
Percy  was  the  true  type  of  the  travelling  Eng- 
lishman who  cannot  rest  till  he  has  seen  the 
two  poles  of  the  universe ;  and  he  had  no  time 
to  waste  on  the  tender  passion." 

"  Nevertheless,"  said  Geoffry,  after  a  mo- 
ment's hesitation,  "  there  were  —  are  —  ru- 
mours. May  I  speak  frankly,  sir  ?  It  is 
something  that  I  think  you  might  wish  to 
know  —  " 

The  Colonel,  a  little  surprised,  settled  back 
in  his  chair  in  a  listening  attitude. 

"  It  was  after  your  last  visit  to  Avenel,  that 
a  strange  thing  occurred.  An  old  couple  — 
decent  people  in  an  humble  walk  of  life  —  ar- 
rived at  the  Castle  and  asked  for  admission. 
Avenel  saw  them  —  what  passed  is  not  known 
—  there  was  a  tremendous  scene  —  the  old  peo- 
ple hurried  away  much  cut  up  and  wounded. 
Since  then,  my  uncle  has  behaved  more  like  a 
lunatic  than  a  man  of  sound  brain.  This  oc- 
curred just  before  I  left  home  sixteen  months 
ago,  and  what  has  since  happened  I  know  not. 
But  the  gossips  in  the  cottages  —  one  can't  stop 
the  mouth  of  a  goodwife,  sir,  coming  upon  her 
while  out  shooting  or  rambling  in  the  woods  — 
say  'twas  a  claim  upon  Percy's  successor  for 
provision,  from  the  parents  of  a  deceased  Lady 
Avenel." 

"  There  have  been  stranger  things,"  said  the 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  53 

Colonel,  smiling.  "  So  Percy  is  believed  to 
have  been  actually  married,  then  ?  " 

"What  is  more,  there  were  hints  of  a  son 
of  his  left  in  the  care  of  these  old  people  — 
who  died,  I  suppose,  or  he  would  certainly  have 
cropped  up  with  such  an  inheritance  in  ques- 
tion." 

"  Undoubtedly,"  answered  his  host.  "  I 
don't  envy  Avenel  his  honours.  Never  have 
I  beheld  a  man  so  ill  at  ease  in  an  excellent 
position.  And  his  poor  lady  is  little  to  be 
congratulated." 

"His  first  wife  —  my  father's  sister  —  lived 
with  him  for  but  six  months,"  said  Geoffry, 
"  and  then  faded  like  a  figure  on  a  magic  lan- 
tern slide.  But  in  those  days  he  was  a  hearty 
enough  fellow,  they  say,  and  not  ill-looking. 
Now,  'tis  like  insanity,  the  way  he  bears  him- 
self at  times." 

"  He  has  threatened  me  with  a  visit,"  said 
Poythress,  laughing.  "  Though  I  think  he 
fancied  me  inhabiting  a  forest  wigwam,  we  shall 
be  put  to  it  to  receive  him  hospitably,  should 
he  decide  to  come." 

"  May  it  be  when  I  have  left  you,"  said 
Geoffry,  smiling  in  return.  "  One  thing,  sir,  if 
you  will  permit  me  to  say  so,  would  please 
every  one  who  respects  the  name  and  title  — 
should  you  succeed  to  it." 

"I  doubt  it,"  said  the  Colonel,  good  hu- 
mouredly.  "Those  of  us  born  on  this  side  the 


54  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

water  have  always  to  live  down  a  certain 
amount  of  disapproval  of  that  fact  from  our 
English  kin.  I  bear  them  no  malice,  for 
Heaven  knows  I  have  enough  to  make  me 
happy,  over  here.  I  hope  life  strikes  you  as 
at  least  livable  in  this  infant,  woody  country?" 

"An  earthly  Eden,"  exclaimed  Geoffry, 
thinking  of  a  certain  fairest  Eve. 

"  If  good  health,  a  good  wife  and  children, 
good  neighbours,  enough  and  to  spare  of  this 
world's  goods  —  and,  I  hope  I  may  add,  the 
respect  of  my  fellow-men  —  can  make  it  so 
for  me,  it  is,"  answered  the  Colonel,  laughing. 
"  But  that  my  wife  and  Miss  Betty,  as  is  per- 
haps natural,  have  got  into  their  little  heads 
the  idea  that  we  must  now  and  then  go  home 
to  be  properly  c  polished/  I  believe  I  —  and 
I'm  as  certain  of  Hughey,  and  my  little  tom- 
boy, May  —  would  be  content  to  live  and  die 
at  Vue  de  1'Eau." 

Flower,  who  had  been  greatly  impressed  by 
the  events  of  the  day  and  evening,  had  it 
strongly  in  mind  to  now  consult  his  host  upon 
the  true  meaning  of  what  he  had  observed  and 
heard  concerning  the  temper  of  the  Virginians 
in  the  political  crisis  of  the  hour.  Coming 
direct  from  the  atmosphere  of  the  petty  Court 
of  their  Royal  Governor,  this,  the  first  glimpse 
he  had  had  of  certain  aspects  of  thought  and 
sentiment  among  the  planter-class,  could  not 
but  disturb  him  mightily.  In  the  colder 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  55 

northern  atmosphere  of  the  new  world  where 
his  lot  had  been  first  cast,  the  blossom  of 
loyalty  to  kings  could  hardly  have  been  ex- 
pected to  expand  to  its  fullest  growth ;  but, 
among  the  descendants  of  those  who  had  lived 
and  died  King's  men,  it  was  reasonable  to  hope 
for  a  society  altogether  monarchic  in  its  ten- 
dencies. If  Geoffry  had  given  heed  to  the 
apprehension  of  thinkers  graver  than  himself, 
as  to  the  possible  outcome  of  the  hardly  yet 
avowed  movement  of  American  revolt  against 
King  and  Parliament,  it  was  to  pooh-pooh  the 
idea  that  the  disease  could  ever  spread  to  Vir- 
ginia. For  was  not  the  new  doctrine  primarily 
democratic,  and  what  were  Virginians  if  not 
advocates  of  class  ?  Since  the  genesis  of  their 
civilization,  had  they  not  been  sitting  among 
the  King's  Burgesses,  representing  the  King  as 
Councillors,  devoted  to  the  Established  Church, 
and  faithful  to  law-giving  according  to  the  Brit- 
ish code  ?  Was  it  possible  that,  for  the  mere 
question  of  taxation  without  representation,  the 
long-standing  crust  of  their  loyal  society  was 
to  be  upheaved,  and  anarchy  ensue  ? 

These  queries,  once  finding  speech,  poured 
in  a  flood  from  the  young  man's  eager  lips. 
Before  answering  him,  the  open  brow  of  kind 
Hugh  Poythress  clouded  heavily.  Half  a 
dozen  whiffs  from  his  pipe  were  not  sufficient 
to  prepare  him  to  make  admissions  he  was  too 
honest  to  withhold. 


56  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  If  you  ask  me  to  tell  you  what  I  myself 
think  on  this  weighty  subject/*  said  Hugh 
Poythress,  finally,  "  God  knows  I  have  never 
had  but  one  opinion  —  that  the  King  and  Par- 
liament have  a  right  to  make  the  laws  it  is 
our  bounden  duty  to  abide  by.  But  I,  and  a 
few  like  me  in  this  Colony,  are  but  units  in 
the  body  of  landholders  who  now  every  day 
more  bitterly  resent  the  laws  they  consider  to 
be  binding  hard  upon  the  Colonies  in  general. 
What  you  saw  here,  to-night,  is  a  straw  that 
shows  which  way  the  wind  blows  over  Virginian 
soil.  Believe  me,  when  a  man  like  my  neigh- 
bour Washington  permits  himself  to  use  such 
expressions,  before  such  people  as  those  you 
have  seen  gathered  around  my  table,  there  is 
mischief  in  the  air." 

"  There  has  been  no  hint  heretofore  of 
Colonel  Washington's  disaffection?"  exclaimed 
Flower,  with  the  eagerness  of  a  young  diplomat 
on  the  scent  of  a  great  discovery. 

"  I  am  convinced  there  is  no  man  in  the 
Colony  wishes  its  prosperity  more,  would  go  to 
greater  lengths  to  serve  it,  or  is  a  better  subject 
of  the  Crown  than  he.  At  the  same  time  — 
and  you  may  take  him  as  a  representative  of  a 
large  and  most  important  faction  —  he  is  pos- 
sessed of  such  an  innate  sense  of  freedom, 
is  governed  by  such  an  iron  spirit  of  justice, 
that  were  he  once  persuaded  against  the  British 
Empire,  he  would  fight  to  the  death  in  resist- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  57 

ing  it.  God  forbid  that  King  and  Parliament 
should  ever  force  him  to  be  their  enemy. 
When  you  go  back,  my  dear  Flower,  to  Lord 
Dunmore,  who,  I  may  observe,  is  yet  on  the 
most  friendly  terms  with  Colonel  Washington, 
in  nothing  can  you  better  exercise  your  loyalty 
and  intelligence  than  by  trying  to  convince  him 
of  these  facts.  For  me,  it  is  breath  wasted  to 
discuss  such  matters  with  His  Excellency.  I 
have  so  often  tried  to  bring  him  to  my  way  of 
thinking." 

"  He  is,  indeed,  obstinately  blind  to  what  is 
going  on  under  his  dominion/'  was  the  thought- 
ful answer.  "  The  little  time  I  have  been  with 
him  has  enabled  me  to  see  and  wonder  at  his 
hot-headed  course  in  the  handling  of  the  Colo- 
nists with  whom  he  has  to  deal.  This  is,  of 
course,  between  ourselves,  as  it  would  ill  be- 
come a  young  man  occupying  my  relation  to 
His  Excellency  to  criticise  him  publicly.  But 
so  much  I  may  say  to  any  one :  all  that  I  have 
observed  since  coming  into  Virginia  confirms 
your  own  hints  of  a  trouble  brewing  for  all 
of  us  who  stand  up  for  the  Crown." 

"And  now,  Captain,  since  we  have  both 
spent  the  day  in  the  saddle, — unless  you  will 
let  me  offer  you  a  final  night-cap,  —  perhaps 
we  had  better  be  getting  off  to  bed." 

Flower,  who  had  begun  to  feel  the  premoni- 
tory enticements  of  slumber,  assented.  When 
they  arose  from  their  chairs,  he  fancied  he  heard 


58  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

footsteps  retreating  from  the  door ;  and  as  the 
Colonel,  brass  candlestick  in  hand,  preceded 
him  to  his  chamber  on  the  second  floor,  through 
a  long  dimly  lighted  corridor,  Flower  saw  flash 
for  a  moment  into  the  gloom  at  the  far  end  of 
it  and  disappear,  a  woman's  white  face.  The 
distinct  sound  of  footsteps  now  catching  Colonel 
Poythress'  ear,  he  looked  back  at  Geoffry,  with 
a  smile. 

"  Don't  fancy  that  we  own  a  White  Ladye 
or  one  of  her  congeners  at  Vue  de  TEau.  This 
nocturnal  rambler  is  probably  the  housekeeper, 
Mrs.  Judith,  a  most  excellent  body,  well  versed 
in  the  duties  of  her  place,  and  a  treasure  to  my 
wife,  who  would  find  it  hard  to  keep  up  a  gen- 
teel ordinary  like  ours,  without  her  aid.  But 
she  is  a  sad  prowling  creature,  always  on  the 
watch.  Here  is  your  room,  where  all  is,  I 
hope,  to  your  liking.  And  so,  good  night  to 
you,  Captain ;  and  take  my  advice  —  try  not 
to  dream  of  the  troubles  of  our  times.  They 
have  kept  me  awake,  of  late,  when  once  'twould 
have  needed  the  trump  of  doom  to  stir  me." 


Ill 

THE  day  following  the  fiasco  of  Madam 
Poythress'  tea-drinking  promised  well 
for  the  out-of-door  festivity  to  which 
cc  the  neighbourhood"  was  bound.  Some  of  the 
house-party  at  Vue  de  1'Eau  preferring  to  go  by 
water  to  the  rendezvous,  a  barge  manned  by  six 
negroes  in  livery,  with  velvet  caps,  awaited  them 
at  the  landing-stage  below  the  bluff.  A  pleas- 
anter  mode  of  progress  it  were  hard,  in  truth, 
to  devise,  than  this  of  gliding,  with  perfectly 
timed  oars,  down  the  rippled  bosom  of  a  wide 
teeming  river,  between  banks  covered  to  the 
water's  edge  with  unbroken  greenery  of  May ; 
boughs  drooping  into  the  stream,  boughs  piled 
in  feathery  layers,  boughs  rising  to  the  sky  — 
and  all  fresh  with  matin  dew,  embalmed  with 
odour,  and  vocal  with  the  song  of  birds ! 

Some  of  the  dramatis  person ae  of  our  fore- 
going chapters  having  their  own  reasons  for 
preferring  to  ride  or  drive  to  the  barbecue,  pre- 
ceding the  family  chariot  that  contained  Madam 
Poythress  and  her  chosen  friends,  a  cavalcade 
of  equestrians  took  the  road  —  Flower,  to  his 
satisfaction,  mounted  upon  the  high-mettled 

59 


60  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

grey  that  had  excited  his  admiration  in  the 
stalls  the  day  before.  Better  still,  his  place  was 
at  the  bridle-rein  of  Miss  Betty,  who,  in  her 
habit  of  scarlet  cloth,  a  white  ostrich  plume 
curling  around  her  scarlet  cap,  disdaining  the 
sun-mask  urged  upon  her  by  her  mamma,  can- 
tered under  the  forest  canopy,  a  sight,  perhaps, 
to  make  "an  old  man  young,"  but,  certainly, 
to  make  a  young  man  older  through  much 
joy  of  the  eyes.  In  his  exhilarated  state,  the 
Captain  found  himself  wondering  over  the 
dismal  thoughts  of  impending  trouble  he  had 
taken  to  bed  with  him  the  night  before.  Just 
now,  the  world  seemed  but  one  continuous 
arching  glade  of  the  greenwood  with  lace-like 
foliage  imprinted  on  the  blue  of  summer 
heavens,  and  a  creature  made  up  of  light  and 
loveliness  to  share  it  with  him. 

Matoaca,  riding  beside  her  father,  had  been 
unexpectedly  rescued  from  the  decree  of  an 
offended  law-giver  —  Colonel  Poythress,  who 
rarely  asserted  his  rights  as  a  parent,  having 
forcibly  rescinded  her  mamma's  sentence  con- 
demning her  to  stop  at  home  from  the  frolic  of 
the  year ;  and  the  two,  escaping  at  a  gallop  from 
the  reproaches  of  the  door-step,  had  now  slack- 
ened speed  to  gloat  together  over  the  success 
of  their  escapade.  Little  recked  May  that  her 
riding-habit  was  of  sad-coloured  nankeen,  her 
face  obscured  by  the  ugly  vizard  Sister  Betty 
had  disdained !  It  was  enough  for  her  that 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          61 

day  to  be,  and  to  be  abroad  in  her  father's 
jovial  company.  And  in  due  time  they  and  the 
couple  ahead  were  overtaken  and  distanced  by 
Rolfe  astride  of  Diabolus,  who,  sawing  on  his 
bit,  with  eyes  of  flame,  and  his  great  stride 
covering  the  ground  at  a  ferocious  rate  of 
speed,  soon  left  all  behind. 

"  How  splendidly  he  sits  that  brute ! "  ex- 
claimed Geoffry.  While  something  within  told 
the  Captain  that  he  might  safely  indulge  in 
praises  of  this  particular  rival,  he  was  honestly 
impressed  by  the  young  Provincial's  look  of 
muscular  manhood,  his  admirable  bearing  in 
the  saddle.  "  Gad !  I  wish  we  had  him  in 
our  troop.  A  born  soldier  in  appearance,  and 
yet  doomed  to  the  most  humdrum  existence 
known  to  man.  I,  myself,  had  rather  break 
stones  on  a  highway  than  try  to  drill  ideas 
into  little  rustics." 

"  When  you  are  done  with  the  excellences  of 
my  cousin,"  said,  demurely,  the  lady  with  the 
ostrich  plume,  "  perhaps,  Captain,  you  will  not 
object  to  taking  advantage  of  the  good  road 
ahead,  to  quicken  our  own  speed."  And  as 
they  rode  onward,  I  fear  there  was  little  more 
mention  bestowed  by  either  upon  the  merits  or 
deserts  of  Cousin  Rolfe. 

Although  not  successful  in  overtaking  the 
rider  of  Diabolus,  our  equestrians  were  at  no 
loss  for  companions  on  the  way.  A  goodly 
number  were  there,  of  neighbours  on  horseback, 


62  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

neighbours  in  chariots  and  chaises,  neighbours 
on  pillions,  faring  in  the  same  direction  as  them- 
selves, all  seeming  to  Geoffry  so  astonishingly 
cordial  and  interested  in  each  other !  Flower 
had  not  before  realised  that  in  this  small  society 
isolated  on  the  banks  of  a  great  new-world  river, 
what  concerned  its  members  was  of  common 
importance ;  and  that  the  reigning  families 
could  perforce  indulge  themselves  in  no  social 
intercourse  save  with  their  own  kind. 

Drawing  nearer  to  the  scene  of  the  day's 
entertainment,  there  was,  nevertheless,  in  the 
gay  throng  blocking  a  high-way  where  all 
roads  converged  to  reach  a  ferry  across  the 
Potomac,  a  less  exclusive  element  of  Colonial 
society.  From  far  and  near,  the  fine  weather 
and  sports  in  prospect  had  convened  country- 
folk afoot,  on  plough-horses  or  mules,  or  in  odd 
rustic  vehicles  —  the  gaps  in  their  procession 
filled  by  that  privileged  class,  the  negroes,  who, 
strutting  or  slouching  in  the  dust,  bedight  with 
rags  and  tags  of  finery  worn  with  their  suits  of 
domestic  manufacture,  looked  happier  than  any 
kings  on  the  roll  of  history.  One  rantipole 
darky  sported  upon  his  woolly  pate  a  circlet 
of  turkeys'  tail  feathers,  resembling  an  Indian 
head-dress ;  another  wore  an  old  cocked  hat 
with  a  string  of  birds'  eggs  around  his  neck ; 
while  the  proudest  man  upon  the  road,  bar 
none,  was  a  black  fiddler,  clad  in  a  scarlet  uni- 
form, its  colour  faded  out  in  the  service  of  Brad- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  63 

dock's  campaign  before  it  descended  into  the 
treasure-chest  of  the  present  owner,  upon  whom 
its  coat-tails  fairly  dragged  the  ground. 

Turning  their  vehicles  aside  to  allow  passage 
to  the  gentry,  were  seen,  with  their  families,  the 
smaller  landholders,  factors,  farmers,  and  over- 
seers, to  whom  it  no  more  occurred  to  wish  to 
pass  the  dividing  line  between  them  and  their 
superiors  in  fortune,  than  it  would  have  done 
to  a  similar  class  in  the  mother  country.  Yet 
there  was  no  lack  of  pleasant  relations  between 
the  two.  Nods,  smiles,  enquiries  as  to  the 
health  of  present  and  absent  members,  passed 
freely  from  the  London  chariot  to  the  provin- 
cial chaise  and  farm-wagon  overcrowded  with 
simple  folk  in  holiday  attire.  Colonel  Poy- 
thress,  a  favourite  in  all  grades  of  county  society, 
was  accosted  by  the  mistress  of  a  dairy  farm, 
who  used  the  opportunity  of  a  block  of  vehicles 
coming  together  in  the  road,  to  sell  him  a 
couple  of  kegs  of  butter  at  her  own  dear  price  ; 
and  he  was  afterwards  induced,  in  like  fashion, 
to  take,  at  the  highest  market  rates,  all  of 
Granny  Carty's  rather  questionable  stock  of 
sun-dried  hominy. 

When,  therefore,  the  worthy  Colonel  beheld, 
edging  his  way  across  the  throng  toward  him, 
an  individual  from  whose  hands  he  had  come 
off  much  the  worse  for  a  commercial  transac- 
tion between  them  the  spring  before,  he  ob- 
served to  his  daughter,  dryly  :  — 


64  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

<c  We  will  ride  on,  my  dear,  if  you  please. 
At  the  rate  I  am  being  fleeced  to-day,  'twould 
be  small  wonder  should  that  thorough-pac'd 
rascal,  Grig,  succeed  in  inducing  me  to  buy 
another  pair  of  mules. " 

The  ground  selected  for  the  sports  was  a 
grassy  amphitheatre  boasting  a  circular  race- 
track, cleared  from  the  thick  woods  on  the 
river's  bank  directly  above  a  primitive  ferry, 
to-day  in  brisk  operation  to  fetch  recruits  for 
the  entertainment  from  the  shore  of  Maryland, 
opposite ;  while  the  ferry-master,  a  functionary 
famed  for  his  testy  temper,  was,  like  the 
stewards  of  the  day,  in  full  exercise  of  author- 
ity inflated  by  observation  of  a  crowd.  One 
side  of  the  ground  rising  around  the  amphi- 
theatre was  already  scattered  with  yokels  who, 
their  vehicles  unhitched,  and  horses  tied  to 
swinging  branches  in  the  woods,  had  left  home 
at  sunrise  to  secure  this  point  of  vantage.  In 
the  ring  surrounding  the  judges,  backers,  cham- 
pions, sporting  notabilities,  and  idlers  peculiar 
to  such  an  occasion,  wandered  a  number  of 
those  tricksters,  bearwards,  fencers,  and  petty 
chapmen,  declared  by  Colonial  law  to  be  under 
ban  as  rogues  and  vagabonds  at  ordinary  times, 
but  here  allowed  to  go  scot-free.  To  the  right 
of  the  course  was  erected  a  stand  of  rough 
boards,  gayly  decorated  with  green  boughs,  red 
cloth,  and  garlands  of  oak  leaves  surrounding 
the  royal  coat-of-arms.  This  was  apportioned 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  65 

to  the  use  of  the  gentlefolk,  while  an  undeco- 
rated  range  of  seats  received  the  ranks  of  ordi- 
nary spectators.  In  a  grove  to  the  left,  above 
the  water's  edge,  were  seen  in  preparation  the 
Eleusinian  mysteries  that  gave  style  and  title  to 
the  day ;  mysteries  fully  developed  and  dis- 
cussed before  the  games  were  put  under  way ; 
in  other  words,  the  barbecue  of  rural  Virginia 
as  known  to  our  Colonial  forefathers. 

Over  pits  well  furnished  with  red-hot  coals 
of  hickory,  were  suspended  the  victims  of  the 
sacrifice  —  a  whole  beef,  with  several  sheep  and 
hogs,  roasting  slowly,  in  company  with  other 
succulent  dainties  to  be  presently  dispensed  in 
portions  to  the  holders  of  tickets  for  the  feast. 
Those  unable  to  pay  the  small  dues  demanded 
for  the  tickets,  solaced  themselves  with  the 
contents  of  baskets  brought  from  home ;  the 
negroes,  coming  off  best  of  all,  with  fish  and 
crabs  caught  in  the  abounding  river  and  cooked 
over  the  wood-embers  of  fires  kindled  upon  the 
gravelly  bank. 

Although,  for  custom's  sake,  the  gentlemen 
of  the  county  went  into  the  enclosure  around 
the  barbecue,  and  made  show  of  tasting  both 
the  meat  and  drink  provided  for  the  crowd, 
they  reserved  their  appetites  for  the  picnic 
arranged  by  their  wives  and  daughters  in  a 
sequestered  glade  at  some  little  distance  from 
the  scene  of  common  activity.  Here,  upon 
napkins  of  damask  spread  on  the  shaded 


66  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

ground,  were  temptingly  set  forth  the  spoils 
of  hampers  despatched  from  the  most  famous 
store-rooms  within  a  radius  of  twenty  miles ; 
the  opportunity,  a  good  one  for  the  display 
of  culinary  masterpieces,  being  generally  im- 
proved with  zeal  by  contestant  housekeepers. 

Upon  rocks,  stumps,  the  roots  of  trees,  and 
cushions  of  velvet  moss,  around  the  feast,  were 
grouped  dames  and  cavaliers,  figures  for  Rane- 
lagh  in  a  setting  but  recently  vacated  by  the 
red  monarchs  of  these  wilds ;  while,  rising 
above  their  chat  and  laughter,  above  the  draw- 
ing of  corks,  and  the  hum  of  the  adjacent 
crowd,  arose  the  merry  brawl  of  a  streamlet, 
plunging  from  ledge  to  ledge  of  a  rocky  stair- 
case, on  its  way  to  join  the  river. 

It  was  full  afternoon  before,  the  refection 
at  an  end  and  its  remnants  cleared  away,  the 
programme  of  sports  began  by  a  tourney  of 
rustics  mounted  on  mules,  tilting  with  wooden 
spears  for  a  suspended  ring.  This  was  followed 
by  the  climbing,  by  boys,  of  a  greased  pole, 
for  the  reward  of  a  fat  goose ;  and  the  at- 
tempted capture,  by  his  tail,  of  an  active  little 
pig  whose  caudal  appendage  had  been  pre- 
viously greased.  When  the  shouts  and  guffaws 
of  laughter  elicited  by  this  performance  had 
died  down,  four  yokels  cudgelled  for  a  hat ; 
and  then  into  the  ring  marched  a  band  of 
jaunty  negro  fiddlers,  each  of  whom  had  to 
play,  without  laughing,  a  tune  differing  from 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  67 

the  others,  and  all  to  play  together  !  Amid 
the  Bedlam  of  resulting  sound,  one  performer 
after  another  dropped  out  of  the  ranks  in 
bursting  mirth ;  till,  at  last,  but  a  single  aspir- 
ant remained, —  a  solemn  darky,  he,  indeed, 
of  late  Colonial  regimentals,  —  who,  from  the 
beginning,  had  not  ceased  to  scrape  "  Money 
Musk,"  without  the  glimmer  of  a  smile.  To 
him  having  been  awarded  a  brand-new  shining 
violin,  he  received  the  prize  wearing  the  same 
lugubrious  mien ;  and,  carrying  it  in  his  arms, 
he  made  the  circuit  of  the  course,  bowing  on 
all  sides,  like  a  successful  toreador. 

Next,  sidling,  blushing,  shuffling,  nudging 
each  other,  came  upon  the  scene  six  maidens, 
daughters  of  farmers,  who  proceeded  to  sing, 
each,  a  stanza  of  some  ditty  familiar  to  the 
audience,  the  most  tuneful  among  them  carry- 
ing off  in  triumph  a  quire  of  printed  ballads. 
Two  stalwart  girls  then  walked  across  the 
course,  supporting  upon  their  heads,  full 
milking-pails ;  and  to  the  steadier  of  nerve 
and  surer  of  foot  was  presented,  amid  loud 
hand  clappings,  a  pair  of  silken  hose.  These 
old-fashioned  diversions,  with  a  few  other  com- 
petitions of  the  same  popular  variety,  ended 
the  first  part  of  the  entertainment. 

The  second  half  of  the  day's  sports  —  which 
was  to  include  jumping,  running,  wrestling, 
shooting  at  targets,  and  the  like,  by  the  best 
champions  of  all  classes  of  society  in  the  county 


68  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

—  brought  Captain  Flower  from  the  side  of 
the  magnet  that  had  so  far  retained  him,  to 
the  rope  dividing  the  arena  from  the  crowd. 
There,  while  wedged  in  the  throng,  looking 
on  with  interest  and  admiration  at  the  really 
fine  exhibitions  of  athletic  power  and  skill 
displayed  by  the  contestants,  —  among  whom 
Rolfe  Poythress  took  repeatedly  the  lead,  — 
Geoffry  saw,  elbowing  toward  him,  a  man 
soiled  and  dusty,  in  whose  inflamed  coun- 
tenance he  had  some  difficulty  in  recognising 
his  own  servant,  Trooper  Keys. 

"  Good  Heavens  !  Keys,  you  haven't  been 
getting  drunk  and  fighting  here"  cried  the 
young  man,  in  disgust. 

"  Not  a  drop  did  I  touch  but  cider,  sir, 
and  of  that  not  to  go  beyond  a  jug  full,  but 
for  the  fighting,  thank  the  Lord,  I've  laid  out 
my  man,  so  that  he'll  not  be  giving  sauce  to 
a  gander  over  soon  again  ;  and  he  calling  your 
honour  a  toy-soldier,  a  carpet-knight  that  could 
do  naught  but  dance  at  a  lady's  apron  string. 
Captain,  we're  off  here  alone ;  and  we've  this," 
laying  his  finger  upon  the  sleeve  of  Flower's 
uniform,  "  to  stand  by.  I'm  not  cock  sure 
about  the  jump,  sir,  but  I  know  you  could  beat 
Master  Poythress  on  the  run." 

"  The  same  notion  had  just  come  into  my 
own  head,  Keys,"  said  Flower,  upon  whose 
cheeks  settled  a  fine  red  tinge  of  young  man- 
hood. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          69 

"  Then,  sir,  there's  a  party  just  fallen  out  of 
the  dash  of  a  hundred  yards,  sir.  Offer  your- 
self, Captain,  and  let  the  Cherokees  look  out 
for  sport." 

The  matter,  indeed,  was  easily  arranged ; 
and  in  a  short  time,  Geoffry,  equipped  in  such 
fashion  as  could  be  hastily  devised,  entered 
the  lists  and,  by  way  of  warming  up  his  blood, 
made  one  of  a  half-dozen  hearty  fellows,  in  a 
jumping-match,  in  which  they  were  all  easily 
outdone  by  Rolfe.  The  tables  were  turned 
in  the  ensuing  dash,  by  the  same  competitors, 
of  a  hundred  yards  in  length,  won  by  the 
nimble,  clean-limbed  young  Briton  amid  the 
huzzas  of  a  friendly  audience. 

"  But  you  pressed  me  close,"  said  Flower, 
as  Rolfe  came  up  to  offer  him  congratulations. 

"  Your  style  is  the  best  I  ever  saw,"  answered 
Rolfe. 

"  I  can  tell  you,  now,"  rejoined  the  soldier, 
modestly,  "  that  at  school  they  gave  me  c  the 
Greyhound'  for  a  sobriquet." 

"  I  should  like  nothing  better  than  to  try  a 
mile  with  you,"  said  Rolfe,  "  though  'tis  own- 
ing myself  beat  before  we  start.  What  if  we 
propose  it  to  the  judges,  to  take  place  after 
the  next  match,  when  we  shall  have  got  our 
wind  again  ? " 

"  Agreed,"  said  Geoffry,  nothing  loth.  Upon 
the  mile  race  for  runners,  presently  announced, 
centred,  therefore,  not  only  the  closest  atten- 


70  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

tion  of  the  day,  but,  on  the  part  of  the  Poy- 
thress  family,  a  mixed  sentiment  of  pride  and 
blood,  and  hospitable  interest  in  their  stranger 
guest.  While  the  two  champions  were  waiting 
the  starter's  signal,  Rolfe,  by  ill  luck,  espied 
upon  the  breast  of  Flower's  shirt  a  tiny  bow  of 
ribbon  which  he  had  himself  used  that  morning 
to  tie  together  the  knot  of  daffodils  presented 
to  Betty  as  she  had  set  out  upon  her  ride,  and 
accepted  by  her  with  an  enchanting  smile  of 
thanks.  The  flowers,  where  were  they  ?  And 
the  ribbon  thus  transferred,  what  could  it  mean 
but  the  one  blasting  fact  of  Betty's  open  pref- 
erence for  Flower  ?  It  was  a  shaft  aimed  at 
the  vital  part  of  Rolfe,  and  for  a  moment  his 
stout  heart  staggered  beneath  the  blow.  A 
fierce  wave  of  jealousy,  arising,  swept  away  all 
joy  in  the  day,  all  pride  in  the  moment,  all 
ambition  for  success.  He  cast,  over  in  the 
direction  where  Betty's  scarlet  habit  glowed 
like  a  poppy  amid  the  green  garlands  of  the 
stand,  one  black,  reproachful  look.  And  at 
that  instant,  a  voice  cried,  "  Go,"  and  they 
were  off! 

"  A  bad  start  for  Poythress,"  said  some  one 
in  May's  ear.  With  her  loyal  gaze  riveted  on 
Rolfe,  the  girl  had  to  own  that  this  dreadful 
thing  was  true.  From  the  outset,  his  long 
loping  run  had  fallen  gradually  behind  the 
beautiful  free  stride  of  his  competitor,  and  he 
now  seemed  to  be  jogging  along  mechanically, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          71 

accepting  his  defeat  as  a  foregone  conclusion. 
This  was  more  than  the  high  spirit  of  the  little 
maid  could  bear. 

"  He  is  not  trying.  Oh  !  if  he  would  only 
try ! "  she  said  to  herself,  despairingly. 

cc  The  Captain  wins  !  The  Captain  !  The 
Captain  !  "  called  out  the  knowing  ones  around 
the  ring,  and  the  crowd  took  up  the  cry. 

Tears  of  vexation  filled  May's  eyes,  but 
they  could  not  blind  her  to  the  fact  that 
Flower  was  far  ahead.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  second  half-mile,  when  he  passed  directly 
under  their  post  of  observation,  Betty,  smiling, 
joyous,  preening  herself  as  though  she  already 
shared  in  his  triumph,  leaned  over  the  rail  to 
send  fluttering  forth  upon  the  air  the  wisp  of 
cambric  she  called  her  handkerchief.  May's 
handkerchief,  limp  with  her  tears,  would  have 
been  of  no  service  as  a  pennon.  But  as  Rolfe 
passed,  the  sight  of  his  face,  white  and  set  and 
dogged,  inspired  her  with  a  sudden  tremendous 
impulse.  In  her  clear  voice,  that  rang  like  a 
trumpet,  she  called  aloud,  imploringly :  — 

"Win,  Rolfe.  You  can  do  it.  Win,  win, 
win  !  " 

Whether  Rolfe  heard  this  alarum,  no  one 
could  be  then  sure ;  but  certain  it  was  that 
from  this  moment,  he  began  to  put  on  speed. 
A  smart  rebuke  from  her  mamma  recalling 
May  from  the  front  to  a  position  where  she 
would  be  inconspicuous  behind  the  others,  she 


72  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

sat  down  and,  shutting  her  eyes,  and  bowing 
her  head  in  misery  on  her  two  hands,  felt  that 
she  was  tasting  the  depths  of  earthly  disappoint- 
ment. Suddenly,  a  new  note  mingled  with  the 
raucous  cheering  of  the  throng  without. 

£C  Poythress !  Poythress  forever  !  Poythress 
gains  ! " 

Reckless  of  consequence,  May  sprang  again 
to  her  old  place  in  the  front  and,  hardly  daring 
to  believe  her  ears,  searched  the  track  for  the 
contestants.  They  were  running  neck  and 
neck !  For  a  brief  space  of  time  the  strained 
attention  of  the  palpitating  crowd  kept  with  the 
two  figures,  coursing  so  close  together  it  seemed 
impossible  they  could  have  ever  been  apart. 
Then,  slightly,  but  unmistakably,  one  form 
was  projected  in  advance  of  the  other.  At 
this,  a  murmur  rather  than  a  cry  was  the  com- 
ment of  the  throng  —  the  distance  widened  — 
the  murmur  swelled  into  a  mighty  shout. 

"Poythress!    Poythress   forever!    Poythress 

*      i » 
wins ! 

What  followed  was  a  noble  example  of  the 
Englishman's  pluck  and  dash  that  has  been 
his  in  all  the  ages.  Flower,  on  the  home 
stretch,  seeing  himself  utterly  outdone  by  the 
grand  staying  power  of  his  adversary,  put  all 
his  manhood  into  the  final  effort.  Coming  up 
again  with  Rolfe,  amid  the  frantic  cheers  of  the 
audience,  he  touched  the  goal  but  a  second  after 
him.  But  with  this  difference  in  result  — 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          73 

while  Rolfe  stood  solid  as  a  rock  to  receive  the 
plaudits  of  those  who  welcomed  them,  Flower 
fell  over  the  line,  fainting  in  the  arms  of  his 
faithful  Keys. 

It  was  a  race  long  to  be  remembered,  one 
that  fixed  upon  the  minds  of  every  man, 
woman,  and  child  who  witnessed  it,  the  true 
value  of  manly  endurance  and  persistent 
fortitude. 

From  Colonel  Washington,  who  did  them 
the  honour  to  walk  over  to  where  the  competi- 
tors were  resting,  the  young  men  received  each 
a  hearty  handshake. 

"A  gallant  contest,  truly,  that  made  me  a 
boy  again  to  wftness  it,"  said  their  hero,  in 
whose  wake  a  train  of  county  magnates 
followed. 

"  You  might  teach  them  a  thing  or  two  in 
broad  jumping,  yet,  Colonel,"  said  Hugh  Poy- 
thress,  who,  with  every  expression  of  solicitude, 
had  remained  by  Flower  until  assured  that  his 
affair  was  nothing  serious.  "  It  is  not  so  long 
since  you  kept  all  of  our  set  upon  their  mettle 
in  that  particular." 

"  I  fear  I  am  now  but  a  settled  oldster,"  an- 
swered Washington,  smiling,  cc  whom  the  joys 
of  farm  and  fireside  have  robbed  of  ambition  to 
excel  in  any  branch  of  this  sport.  But  I  am  not 
too  old  to  feel  the  thrill  in  my  blood  respond- 
ing to  athletic  achievement  such  as  we  have 


seen." 


74  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Colonel  Poythress,  having  satisfied  himself 
that  Geoffry,  after  a  little  time  of  rest,  would  be 
none  the  worse  for  his  mishap,  went  back  to  re- 
assure the  ladies,  who  were  waiting  with  much 
anxiety  to  hear  the  condition  of  their  guest. 
Rolfe  lingered  a  while  longer  until  the  young 
men  were  alone  with  Keys.  It  did  not  occur 
to  either  of  them  to  translate  into  words  his 
sentiment  for  a  foeman  so  worthy  of  his  steel. 
But  both  felt  that  what  had  just  occurred  had 
put  their  friendship  upon  a  basis  it  would  be 
hard  henceforth  to  shake. 

"I  didn't  boast  for  nothing,  sir,"  said  Keys, 
when  he  had  the  Captain  to  himself.  "  They're 
saying  everywhere  'tis  the  prettiest  race  ever 
run  in  the  Province,  and  the  cry  for  you  is  as 
loud  as  the  cry  for  Master  Poythress.  Says  I 
to  myself,  c  God  bless  him  ! '  when  you  put  in 
that  final  spurt." 

Rolfe,  on  returning  to  join  his  cousins,  was 
inspired  to  humbly  ask  Betty's  pardon  for  cer- 
tain thoughts  of  her  he  promised  never  again 
to  cherish. 

"  Pardon ! "  exclaimed  Betty,  in  whose 
cheeks  the  roses,  vanished  by  the  Captain's 
accident,  had  bloomed  again  richly  ;  "  my  dear 
Rolfe,  you  are  a  hero,  the  object  of  all  our 
thoughts  and  praises.  You  don't  need  to 
humble  yourself  to  anybody,  now.  'Tis  we 
who  should  bow  down  to  you,  rather." 

"It  was  your  voice  that  bid  me  win,"  said 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          75 

the  lad,  simply,  "  and  how  could  I  do  other- 
wise ? " 

"  My  voice  ?  Hear  that,  will  you,"  cried  the 
heartless  beauty.  "  La,  May,  come  here,  and 
listen  to  this  foolish  Rolfe,  fancying  it  was  I 
called  out  to  him  as  he  ran  by  us  in  the  last 
half.  No,  no,  cousin,  give  your  thanks  to 
May ;  for  a  pretty  scolding  she  got  for  that 
forward  action  from  mamma." 

Rolfe  did  not  heed  May,  who,  blushing  and 
tender  and  proud  at  once,  hung  upon  his  an- 
swer, eagerly  awaiting  the  acknowledgment  of 
her  share  in  the  glorious  event.  He  did  not  so 
much  as  turn  toward  her ;  but,  fixing  his  deep 
gaze  upon  Betty,  as  though  to  read  into  her 
soul,  turned  abruptly  and  hurried  from  their 
presence.  A  little  later,  Rolfe  himself  clapped 
the  saddle  on  Diabolus  and,  vaulting  into  it, 
was  carried  rapidly  away  from  the  scene  of  his 
triumph  and  defeat. 

Flower's  stay  at  the  plantation  lasted  until  he 
had  no  shred  of  excuse  for  prolonging  it ;  in 
other  words,  until  the  family,  following  the  ex- 
ample of  the  chief  people  of  the  neighbourhood, 
were  to  set  off  for  Williamsburg.  Was  it  five 
days,  five  hours,  or  five  weeks  since  his  arrival 
upon  a  lame  horse  into  the  outer  courts  of 
Paradise?  Flower  could  not  tell.  He  only 
knew  that  he  was  to  have  the  further  joy  of 
leisurely  travel  in  attendance  upon  the  lady 


j6  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

who  now  ruled  his  thoughts  to  the  exclusion 
of  aught  less  ethereal,  less  dear  !  The  Colonel, 
who  had  conceived  for  his  young  guest  a  most 
unaffected  feeling  of  regard,  placed  at  his  dis- 
posal, for  the  trip,  the  grey  horse  Flower  had 
been  riding  every  day  since  coming  to  Vue  de 
1'Eau.  And  then,  once  in  Williamsburg, 
Geoffry  had  a  thousand  plans  for  pursuance  of 
his  idyl.  The  rapture  was,  that  for  the  present 
at  least,  they  twain  were  not  to  be  separated! 
The  only  imagined  source  of  regret  to  Flower 
was  the  departure  from  Vue  de  1'Eau,  on  the 
day  following  the  barbecue,  of  Rolfe  Poythress, 
who,  in  company  with  Mr.  Snow,  went  to 
spend  a  week  or  two  in  Williamsburg  for  last 
arrangements  before  setting  out  to  take  charge 
of  the  summer  session  of  his  school  in  the 
western  valley. 

The  eve  of  their  journey  found  our  young 
Captain  strolling,  for  a  while,  as  was  his  wont, 
alone  amid  the  perfume  of  the  rose  garden,  to 
enjoy  a  smoke  before  going  in  to  rejoin  the 
family  in  the  drawing-room. 

It  was  a  lovely  night,  the  moon  riding  well 
up  in  a  star-sprent  heaven,  the  air  from  the 
river  invigoratingly  cool.  Over  in  the  kitchen 
quarters,  he  heard  the  sound  of  feet  patting,  of 
banjos  twanging,  while  from  a  thicket  issued 
the  note  of  a  lonely  whippoorwill.  Yielding 
to  a  vagrant  impulse,  instead  of  turning  his 
feet  toward  the  way  indoors,  GeofFry  followed 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          77 

a  path  leading  into  a  dense  alley  of  cedars  over- 
grown with  flowering  vines  through  which  the 
moonbeams  could  not  pierce.  In  this  sombre 
solitude  he  was  standing  alone,  breathing  the 
dewy  sweetness  of  some  blossom  wreath  unseen, 
when,  to  his  surprise,  and  that  hardly  a  pleasant 
one,  he  was  accosted  by  a  woman's  voice. 

"  Oh !  sir,  I  beg  your  pardon,  but  I  have 
been  watching  so  long,  and  'tis  my  last  chance," 
said  the  invisible  one.  "  I  am  only  Judith 
Carnes  the  housekeeper,  and  when  you  hear 
what  I  have  to  say,  I  think  you  will  under- 
stand why  I  made  so  bold  as  to  follow  you." 

"  In  what,  madam,  can  I  serve  you  ? "  asked 
Flower,  politely,  of  the  form  —  for  her  face  he 
saw  not  —  at  his  side. 

cc  It  wasn't  c  madam '  when  I  was  your  old 
nurse,  Master  Geoffry,"  she  said,  hysterically 
drawing  in  a  sob.  "  It  is  true  as  God's  heaven 
that  I  had  you  before  ever  you  were  short- 
coated,  and  that  I  left  your  father's  service 
under  sad  circumstances  I  need  not  enter 
upon,  here,  where  they  have  never  been 
known." 

"  Good  Heavens ! "  said  the  young  man. 
"  I  can  hardly  say  that  I  am  glad  to  see  you, 
for  I  have  not  the  ghost  of  an  idea  what  you 
look  like.  But  why  didn't  you  favour  me  with 
a  visit  indoors,  in  more  Christian  fashion  ? " 

"  Because  —  because  —  "  Here  the  shadow 
fell  into  hopeless  weeping  and,  until  she  was 


7 8  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

calmed,  he  had  much  ado  to  possess  his  soul  in 
patience. 

"The  night  you  came,  Master  Geoffry,  I 
followed  you  and  listened  to  your  talk  with  my 
master  in  the  dining-room,  And  I  heard  —  " 

"  Nothing  that  need  occasion  you  such  spas- 
modic wretchedness,  my  good  woman.  If  you 
would  only  consent  to  be  coherent  —  " 

ct  God  help  me,  sir,  I  will.  I  will  tell  you  a 
story  I  meant  no  one  ever  to  know,  till  I 
should  be  under  ground/' 

From  the  recitals  of  her  life  as  the  child  of 
an  apple  farmer  in  a  Devonshire  combe,  to  her 
elevation  to  be  nursery  maid  in  the  family  of 
Sir  Geoffry  Flower,  there  was  little  more  to  be 
gleaned  than  her  lamenting  for  past  days  of 
innocence.  After  the  disgrace  that  sent  her 
back  on  the  hands  of  her  father,  who  re- 
nounced her,  it  was  a  tale  best  forgotten. 
Where  Flower's  interest  sprung  into  vivid  life, 
concerned  the  woman's  chance  meeting  in 
London  with  his  uncle,  Lord  Avenel,  who  had 
employed  her  in  a  service  incredible  to  an 
honest  man. 

"  'Tis  impossible,"  said  Geoffry,  horrified, 

"  Think  a  minute,  sir.  All  this  happened 
when  you  were  a  lad.  Although  sinfully  to 
blame,  until  two  years  in  possession  Lord 
Avenel  did  not  know  of  the  existence  of  the 
heir." 

"  And  the  grandparents,  you  say  ?  " 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  79 

"Were  quiet  folk,  sir,  living  in  a  lonely 
cottage  where  the  child's  mother  had  died. 
'Twas  easy  managed,  and  the  old  couple  sup- 
posed him  drowned  in  the  river,  near." 

GeofFry,  who  tried  not  to  believe,  had  con- 
viction forced  upon  him. 

"You  overheard  me  tell  Colonel  Poythress 
of  their  visit  to  Lord  Avenel  ?  " 

"  Oh !  I  did,  sir,  and  out  of  the  past  came 
all  the  terrors  of  twenty  years  to  haunt  me. 
Lord  Avenel  need  never  have  feared  those  poor 
people.  All  they  wanted  was  a  trifle  of  money, 
perhaps.  But  he,  no  doubt,  like  me,  fears  what 
comes  to  him  at  night,  when  all  the  rest  of  the 
house  lies  peacefully  asleep.  He  is  a  bad, 
weak  man,  Master  GeofFry,  and  I'm  always 
dreading  he  may  take  it  into  his  head  to  come 
over  here  and  stir  the  matter  up." 

"  If  he  did  stoop  to  this  coward's  act,"  ex- 
claimed the  young  man,  indignantly,  "  where  is 
the  poor  unfortunate  that,  between  you,  you 
betrayed  ?  " 

"  God  forgive  me,  Master  GeofFry,  I  believe 
the  boy  is  dead.  But  my  share  in  the  matter 
ended  when  we  reached  the  Colony.  He  was 
taken  from  me,  and  c  adopted  out '  by  the  ship's 
master.  I  am  not  even  sure  of  the  name  of  the 
people.  But  from  what  I  gathered,  it  was 
McDuffie  —  they  were  decent  Scotch  folk  — 
emigrants  going  to  take  up  lands  on  the  fron- 
tier. A  year  or  two  later,  I  met  the  Captain, 


8o  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

when  he  was  again  in  Richmond  port,  and  I 
longed  to  know,  so  I  asked  him  for  news  of 
the  little  lad." 

"  And  his  answer  ?  " 

"That  the  whole  family  had  perished  by  the 
Indians.  But  who  knows  if  this  be  true  ?  Oh ! 
Master  Geoffry,  think  what  I've  had  to  haunt 
my  dreams  !  For,  though  you  mayn't  believe 
it,  sir,  I  had  begun  to  love  the  little  fellow  — 
Alan  Carnes  we  agreed  to  call  him  —  near  your 
age,  he  was,  Master  Geoffry,  or  a  little  younger." 

"  The  plot  sounds  like  a  made-up  story," 
began  Geoffry,  again  uncertain  whether  or  not 
he  was  dealing  with  the  vapourings  of  a  disor- 
dered brain. 

"  Ah,  sir,  if  you  had  heard,  during  that  long 
voyage  in  the  crowded  ship  from  Bristol  the 
stories  of  the  convicts  and  assigned  servants 
among  whom  I  was  paid  to  travel  with  my 
charge !  What  crimes  and  conspiracies  and 
heart-breaks  had  sent  the  poor  sinners  over 
sea  —  there  are  no  stories  that  could  be  writ 
and  printed  to  outdo  them.  What  I  am  tell- 
ing you,  sir,  is  gospel  true  —  and  though  you 
may  never  prove  it,  at  last  I've  eased  my  con- 
science of  the  load." 

"  I  need  not  ask  you  your  motive  in  becom- 
ing my  uncle's  tool,"  he  said,  after  a  moment's 
pause. 

"Nothing  but  desperation,  sir,  to  get  out 
of  the  life  I  was  leading  —  and  the  money  my 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  81 

lord  paid  me  helped  me  to  start  fresh.  'Tis  a 
long  time  since.  Master  Geoffry  —  " 

"  And  you  know  absolutely  nothing  else 
concerning  the  boy  ?  "  interrupted  he. 

cc  Nothing,  sir,  but  what  I  have  told  you. 
My  orders  and  the  Captain's  were  to  c  lose 
sight  of  him/  And  the  Captain  was  paid  a 
better  price  than  I  got." 

"  I  fear,"  said  Geoffry,  "  I  have  no  stomach 
for  intrigue.  Your  whole  tale  seems  to  me  so 
low  and  revolting,  I  would  you  had  spared  me 
the  hearing  of  it.  I  will  not  say  what,  if  this 
thing  be  true,  I  think  you  and  your  precious 
pair  of  comrades  merit.  But  I  confess  to 
curiosity  as  to  how  you,  of  all  people,  came 
to  be  installed  here,  in  a  position  of  confi- 
dence, under  the  roof  of  Lord  AveneFs 
nearest  relatives  ?  " 

"  Fate,  sir  ;  believe  me,  it  was  Fate.  It  was 
in  Richmond  they  ran  upon  me,  sixteen  years 
ago,  when  the  madam  was  in  search  of  a  capa- 
ble maid  and  housekeeper ;  and  here  have  I 
lived  ever  since,  doing  my  duty  and  full  of 
gratitude  to  my  employers,  but  carrying  a  sore 
heart  inside  of  me.  Often  and  over  have  I 
said  I  would  expose  myself  and  Lord  Avenel, 
and  state  the  facts  as  I  have  told  them  to  you. 
But  what  chance  had  I  of  making  any  one  be- 
lieve my  tale  ?  Whom  could  I  help  by  it  ? 
So,  excepting  in  the  interests  of  justice  —  " 

"  Which  you  had  most  certainly  better  leave 


82  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

alone,  if  you  fear  your  own  deserts/'  exclaimed 
Geoffry,  hotly. 

"  Never  mind  my  deserts,  Master  Geoffry  ;  I 
have  got  them  in  this  life,"  she  said  forlornly. 
As  the  young  man  withdrew  from  her,  the 
woman  kept  pace  with  him,  and  when  at 
length  they  came  out  of  the  alley  into  the 
full  moonlight,  and  he  beheld  her  livid  face, 
his  heart  smote  him  for  his  repugnance  of  her. 

"  I  am  sorry  for  you,  Judith,"  he  said  more 
gently.  "  But  why  you  have  made  me  a  party 
to  all  this  cursed  business,  I  can't  for  the  life 
of  me  divine.  Of  course,  as  far  as  making  it 
public  is  concerned,  I  am  tied  hand  and  foot. 
My  Uncle  Avenel  and  I  are  not  likely  to  cross 
each  other's  paths  for  years  to  come ;  and  such 
is  my  sincere  regard  for  Colonel  Poythress,  I 
should  like  nothing  better  than  to  see  him  the 
honoured  and  undisputed  bearer  of  his  family 
title.  As  for  the  poor  devil  who  was  dispos- 
sessed, even  if  he  were  living  now,  there  is  no 
one  sufficiently  interested  to  look  him  up. 
Should  he  ever  present  himself  as  a  claimant, 
that  indeed  were  another  thing.  I  should 
advise  you  to  write  out,  and  sign,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  witnesses,  the  full  complete  story  you 
have  told  to  me.  And  enclose  with  it  any 
proofs  you  may  have,  in  writing,  of  Lord 
Avenel's  complicity.  But  further  than  this 
advice,  I  confess,  I  do  not  desire  to  mingle 
with  your  affair,  in  any  shape." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  83 

"That  is  just  it,  Master  Geoffry,"  she  said 
eagerly.  "  That  is  why  I  asked  you  to  hear 
me.  I  have  written  out  my  shameful  story  in 
every  detail.  It  was  a  penance  I  set  myself, 
long  ago,  and  I  got  Master  Snow,  the  Dominie, 
and  Master  Rolfe  Poythress  to  sign  as  wit- 
nesses last  year  —  they  thinking  it  a  will,  for 
'tis  known  I  have  a  little  property  laid  by. 
But  what  you  said  about  Lord  Avenel  com- 
ing to  the  country,  makes  me  fear  he  will  find 
me  here  and  force  me  to  give  up  this  act  of 
conscience  to  him.  It  must  go  into  safe  hands. 
I  want  you  to  take  it,  sir,  and  keep  it ;  and  if 
ever  you  judge  it  necessary  to  use  the  paper, 
to  do  so.  But  keep  it  secret  during  my  life, 
Master  GeofFry  —  spare  me  the  humiliation 
while  I  live." 

"  What  you  ask  is  too  much ! "  exclaimed 
GeofFry,  in  a  quicksand  of  annoyance.  "  I  am 
a  soldier,  here  to-day,  gone  to-morrow,  with  no 
abiding-place,  no  voice  in  affairs  save  in  the 
way  of  military  duty.  Deposit  your  papers 
with  Mr.  Snow  —  with  the  parson  of  the  par- 
ish—  with  any  magistrate  —  any  one  will  serve 
you  better  than  I  —  " 

"  No  one  stands  as  you  do  to  all  con- 
cerned," said  the  woman,  obstinately.  "  No, 
Master  Geoffry,  I  am  resolved ;  if  you  decline 
to  help  me  as  I  ask,  I  will  destroy  the  writing, 
and  take  my  secret  under  my  coffin  lid." 

"Then  I    consent.       Put   your    documents 


84  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

under  seal,  in  the  letter-case  in  my  bedroom ; 
and,  if  you  choose  to  run  the  risk,  —  perhaps 
on  the  eve  of  war,  —  I  will  keep  them.  But 
I  warn  you,  I  have  no  fancy  for  eerie  myster- 
ies, and  what  I  shall  wish  to  do,  is  to  forget 
speedily  all  you  have  told  me." 

"  God  bless  you,  Master  Geoffry  !  " 

"  No  thanks  for  an  unwilling  service,"  said 
Flower.  They  were  near  the  house.  May, 
standing  in  the  oblong  of  orange  light  within 
the  hall  door,  was  calling  to  him  in  her  honest, 
clear  young  voice  :  — 

"  Cousin  Flower !  Oh !  Cousin  Flower. 
Where  are  you  ?  We  need  you  to  sing  a 
catch !  " 

Mistress  Judith,  snatching  at  Geoffry's  hand, 
left  on  it  a  kiss,  and  melted  into  the  shrubbery. 
Geoffry  breathed  freer  when  he  had  done  with 
her.  He  hoped  never  again  to  reopen  the 
dark  passage  of  her  life. 


IV 


THE  custom  entailed  by  necessity  upon 
the  gentry  of  Colonial  days,  of  making 
their  journeys  in  their  own  coaches,  at- 
tended by  outriders  and  by  grooms  leading 
portmanteaux  horses,  lent  to  the  movements 
abroad  of  a  wealthy  planter  a  degree  of  cere- 
monial importance  to  which  the  humbler  world 
bowed  down.  What,  therefore,  was  the  sur- 
prise and  annoyance  of  Madam  Poythress, 
when,  in  the  course  of  her  progress  to  the 
Capital,  at  the  crossing  of  a  river  toward  the 
latter  part  of  her  jaunt,  the  right  of  her 
chariot,  four  horses  and  immediate  attendants 
to  occupy  all  the  space  of  a  ferry  boat  was 
disputed !  And  this  by  a  rough-looking  fel- 
low, a  solitary  horseman  in  soiled  riding-garb, 
who  had  the  presumption  to  claim  precedence 
of  her  vehicle  and  people. 

"  To  what  are  we  coming  ?  "  cried  the  angry 
lady,  looking  out  of  her  chariot  window,  and 
addressing  all  within  hearing.  "  If  the  Colonel 
and  the  Captain  had  not  stopped  behind  to 
parley  at  the  last  ordinary,  we  should  make 
short  work  of  this  rude  fellow's  pretensions. 

85 


86  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

As  it  is,  ferryman,  I  order  you  to  pay  no  heed 
to  him.  I  and  my  servants  and  horses  will 
cross  at  once,  and  when  the  boat  returns  for 
such  of  my  attendants  as  cannot  be  accom- 
modated now,  this  man  may  doubtless  find  a 
place." 

"  But,  madam,"  ventured  the  official,  who 
did  not  now  for  the  first  time  come  within 
range  of  the  lady's  masterful  tongue,  "  the 
man  is  in  the  right,  and  it  is  my  lawful  duty 
to  give  him  the  first  crossing  of  the  river." 

"  Lawful  duty !  Let  him  take  care  his  in- 
solence to  me  does  not  bring  him  to  the  law- 
ful stocks.  Is  there  no  constable  hereabout 
to  teach  manners  to  you  both  ? " 

"  It  is  I  who  would  go  to  the  stocks,  or 
worse,  should  I  delay  him  so  long  as  to  get 
your  ladyship's  chariot  aboard  the  barge,"  said 
the  ferrymaster,  who  was  making  all  speed  to 
put  his  clumsy  machinery  in  motion.  "  For 
this  is  a  Public  Messenger ;  an  express  from 
the  Committee  of  Correspondence  in  Phila- 
delphia, and  hath  rid,  day  and  night,  under  an 
order  bearing  their  official  seal,  to  carry  a  com- 
munication to  the  Burgesses  at  the  Capital." 

"And,  saving  your  presence,  if  your  lady- 
ship were  as  tired  as  I  am,"  said  the  horse- 
man, with  a  shrug,  "  mayhap  you  would  not 
wonder  that  I  say  little  in  my  own  defence." 

Thus  speaking,  he  rode  upon  the  boat,  and 
the  craft  pushed  out  from  shore.  The  two 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  87 

escorts  of  the  ladies  had  come  up  with  them, 
before  Madam  Poythress  had  exhausted  her 
store  of  indignant  epithets.  When  these  gen- 
tlemen heard  what  had  taken  place,  instead  of 
sympathising  with  the  madam's  tale  of  wrongs, 
the  provoking  creatures  but  pricked  up  their 
ears  in  eagerness  over  the  tidings  it  conveyed. 

"An  express  from  the  Committee  of 
Correspondence  ?  "  said  the  Colonel.  "  This, 
Flower,  means  news  of  moment ;  and  I  pray 
God  it  may  be  such  as  will  placate  the  harsh 
spirit  of  our  agitated  country.  But  who  knows  ? 
In  any  case,  I  burn  to  acquaint  myself  with  it. 
My  dear,  I  think  if  you  and  the  girls  will  lie 
to-night  as  arranged,  at  the  house  of  our  friends, 
the  Bassetts,  the  Captain  and  I  will  push  on 
without  slacking,  on  the  heels  of  the  express. 
We  should,  at  that  rate,  reach  the  Capital  to- 
morrow, in  time  for  the  sitting  of  the  Bur- 
gesses, and  thus  satisfy  ourselves  as  to  what 
has  actually  occurred.  You  and  my  daughters 
will  follow  us  at  your  leisure,  and  arrive  in 
Williamsburg  at  the  time  originally  planned." 

There  were,  in  the  experience  of  the  lady 
of  Vue  de  1'Eau,  certain  moments  when  she 
realised  that  a  husband  must  sometimes  be 
allowed  to  follow  his  own  bent.  Therefore,  to 
the  surprise  and  relief  of  her  hearers,  she  spoke 
but  a  few  words  of  acquiescence  in  the  scheme 
proposed ;  and  so  it  came  to  pass  that,  the 
next  day,  the  two  gentlemen  with  their  per- 


88  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

sonal  servants,  rode  into  Gloucester  Street  but 
a  few  hours  later  than  the  express,  who,  chang- 
ing horses  along  the  way,  had  not  slackened 
speed  until  he  reached  his  goal. 

The  town  of  Williamsburg,  then  in  its  palm- 
iest days,  was  full  to  overflowing  with  the 
most  distinguished  persons  of  the  Colony,  in- 
cluding the  Vice-regal  Court  of  the  Royal  Gov- 
ernor, and  the  Burgesses,  who,  with  their 
families,  were  in  attendance  upon  the  spring 
session  of  the  Assembly.  The  population  was 
further  agreeably  increased  by  the  learned  pro- 
fessors and  the  students  of  the  College  endowed 
by  their  late  majesties  King  William  and  Queen 
Mary,  in  whose  honour,  the  town,  in  the  form 
of  a  cipher  made  of  the  two  initial  letters  of 
their  names  —  W  and  M  —  had  been  originally 
laid  out  on  a  ridge  at  the  head  of  two  creeks, 
one  emptying  into  James  River,  the  other  into 
York  River.  At  one  end  of  Gloucester  Street, 
the  principal  thoroughfare,  stood  the  College 
buildings ;  at  the  other  end,  the  Capitol. 
The  "  Palace  "  of  the  Royal  Governor,  seen 
at  the  extremity  of  Palace  Street,  was  a  spa- 
cious and  handsomely  furnished  mansion,  set 
apart  in  fine  grounds,  shaded  by  abundant  trees, 
including  lindens  imported  from  Scotland  for 
this  purpose.  Other  good  residences  were 
scattered  along  the  streets  and  outskirts  and, 
in  the  season,  every  available  room  was  crowded 
with  visitors.  For  dances  and  like  diversions, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  89 

it  was  customary  to  resort  to  the  Apollo  Room 
of  the  Raleigh  Tavern ;  and  the  public  orna- 
ments of  the  place  were  an  octagon  Powder 
Magazine  built  by  Spotswood  in  1716,  and  a 
statue  of  the  late  Lord  Botetourt,  more  re- 
cently erected  before  the  Capitol,  by  some  of 
that  Governor's  admirers.  This  "  Old  Capi- 
tol "  was  the  heart  of  the  city,  and,  as  was  soon 
to  be  proved,  of  the  rebellion.  In  it,  the 
Governor  and  the  twelve  members  of  the  King's 
Council  were  wont  to  sit  as  judges  in  the  Gen- 
eral Court  in  April  and  October.  Here  were 
held  the  Oyer  and  Terminer  courts  estab- 
lished by  Queen  Anne  to  prevent  the  keeping 
of  prisoners  in  jail  more  than  three  months 
before  trial ;  courts  martial  for  the  trial  of 
pirates  ;  courts  of  admiralty  for  investigation 
of  illegal  trade  in  ships ;  and,  in  fact,  all  courts 
of  justice  conducted  under  English  forms,  ex- 
cepting only  the  ecclesiastical  courts. 

cc  The  whole  building,"  says  an  ancient 
chronicler,  cc  is  surrounded  with  a  neat  area 
encompassed  with  a  good  wall,  and  near  it  is  a 
strong  sweet  prison  for  criminals ;  and,  on  the 
other  side  of  the  open  court,  another  for 
debtors,  when  any  are  removed  from  the  other 
prisons  in  each  county ;  but  such  prisoners  are 
very  rare,  the  creditors  being  there  generally 
very  merciful,  and  the  laws  so  favourable  for 
debtors  that  some  esteem  them  too  indulgent." 

Toward   this   point,    as    Colonel    Poythress 


90  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

and  his  companion  rode  into  the  town,  all  at- 
tention seemed  to  be  turning,  all  steps  con- 
verging. Everywhere  was  excitement  manifest ; 
every  face  of  a  passing  citizen  expressed  pertur- 
bation. The  Colonel,  who,  from  a  sense  of 
dignity,  had  forborne  hitherto  to  ask  questions 
in  chance  encounters  on  the  street,  could  en- 
dure it  no  longer,  and  so  reined  in  his  horse 
before  the  shop  of  a  mild-mannered  tradesman 
who  had  sallied  out  upon  his  threshold  and 
was  looking  anxiously  up  and  down,  as  if  de- 
sirous of  engaging  the  attention  of  anybody 
with  whom  he  might  exchange  the  gossip  of 
his  overburdened  soul. 

"What  has  happened  ?  "  asked  the  Colonel, 
authoritatively. 

"  Oh !  sirs,  bad  news,  and  the  Burgesses  are 
now  sitting  to  discuss  it.  A  woful  time  for 
trade,  and  this  atop  of  it,  your  worships  —  " 

"  What  news  ?  "  interrupted  both  gentlemen, 
thundering  in  concert. 

"  The  Boston  Port  Bill,  craving  your  pardon, 
sirs.  It  has  passed  the  Ministry,"  stammered 
the  man,  frightened  into  what  he  supposed  to 
be  coherency.  "  'Tis  starvation  for  poor  Bos- 
ton folks,  they  say,  and  all  we  Provincials 
treated  like  the  dirt  under  English  feet.  I 
crave  your  pardon,  again,  sirs,  but  there's  no 
stopping  tongues  at  a  time  like  this  —  no 
trouble,  and  your  worships  are  kindly  welcome. 
If  'twas  ever  so  you  needed  anything  in  my 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  91 

line  of  business,  you'll  not  forget  that  Thomas 
Quorn  makes  buckskin  riding-breeches  with 
fidelity,  and  gloves,  none  better;  and  you  can 
depend  on  him  for  kind  usage  at  reasonable 
rates.  Good  morning  to  your  honours  ;  I'm 
sure  'twas  but  a  pride  for  me  to  be  telling  you 
the  first  news,  and  so  —  " 

They  galloped  off,  cutting  short  the  breeches- 
maker's  tide  of  verbosity ;  and,  without  wait- 
ing to  go  to  his  lodgings,  Poythress  sprang 
from  his  saddle  before  the  portico  of  the  Capi- 
tol and,  giving  his  horse  to  the  groom,  hastened 
to  put  himself  in  possession  of  information  at 
the  fountain-head. 

Flower,  whom  it  behooved  to  offer  himself 
ceremoniously  attired  in  the  presence  of  his 
chief,  repaired  to  his  own  quarters  at  Mrs. 
Brinton's  lodging-house. 

We  come,  now,  to  the  afternoon  of  the  26th 
of  May^  1774,  when,  after  stormy  days  of  ses- 
sion, during  which  the  birth  pangs  of  a  nation 
had  begun  to  rend  their  body  corporate,  the 
Burgesses  were  quietly  awaiting  the  action  of 
Lord  Dunmore  upon  their  protest  against  the 
British  "attempt  to  starve  thousands  of  Ameri- 
can people  into  subservience  to  the  Ministry." 
They  had  been  dignified,  forbearing,  in  no  sense 
disloyal  to  their  traditional  reverence  for  the 
Crown.  As  yet,  they  had  not  considered  of 
separation  from  England,  and  only  a  few  ex- 


92  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

tremists  among  them  dreamed  of  cessation  of 
commerce.  But  they  were  offended  deeply, 
and  desired  to  show  their  masters  that  some 
things  they  could  not  brook.  It  was  not  a 
wrong  to  Virginia  they  repudiated,  but  "a  ca- 
lamity which  threatened  the  civil  rights  of 
America."  Until  now,  the  term  "Americans  " 
had  been  chiefly  applied  to  the  native  red 
Indians  ;  and  this  assumption  of  it,  by  patri- 
ots, was  one  of  the  first-fruits  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. Henceforward,  the  thirteen  colonies  of 
the  Atlantic  seaboard,  with  an  aggregate  pop- 
ulation of  not  three  million  souls,  until  now 
virtually  self-governing  commonwealths,  dis- 
connected save  by  the  common  ties  of  race  and  of 
allegiance  to  Great  Britain,  were  to  work  as  one. 
The  news  from  the  Committee  of  Corre- 
spondence had  exploded  among  the  Virginian 
Burgesses  like  a  bomb-shell.  The  interest  of 
the  whole  early  part  of  their  session,  taken  up 
with  settling  boundary  disputes  on  the  Penn- 
sylvanian  border  and  discussing  threatened 
outbreaks  among  the  Shawnee  Indians,  was 
submerged  in  the  tremendous  possibilities  en- 
tailed by  the  necessary  action  of  a  day.  In 
a  "  burst  of  indignation,"  they  had  voted  to 
fall  into  line  with  Massachusetts ;  to  set  apart 
the  approaching  first  of  June  "  as  a  day  of  fast- 
ing, humiliation,  and  prayer,  devoutly  to  im- 
plore the  Divine  interposition  for  averting  the 
heavy  calamity  to  the  civil  rights  of  America ; 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  93 

and  that  the  Burgesses  attend  church  on  that 
day."  The  motion,  put  to  the  vote  of  a  full 
house  —  nearly  a  hundred  members  present  — 
met  with  hardly  a  dissenting  voice.  It  was  the 
work  of  the  younger,  more  fiery  members  of 
this  grave  and  moderate  Assembly,  a  Com- 
mittee including  Jefferson,  Henry,  Richard 
Henry  Lee,  and  Francis  Ludwell  Lee ;  and 
had  been  offered  by  a  man  of  highest  dignity 
of  character,  a  zealous  churchman  and  con- 
servative —  Robert  Carter  Nicholas. 

All  present  were  on  good  personal  terms 
with  the  Governor,  who,  however  reserved  of 
nature  and  sullen  of  habit,  had  not  yet  trans- 
gressed the  necessary  rules  of  civility  in  their 
relations.  Most  of  the  Burgesses  were  pro- 
posers of  and  subscribers  to  the  great  ball  to  be 
given  on  the  day  following,  in  especial  compli- 
ment to  my  Lady  Dunmore  and  her  charming 
daughters,  the  Honourable  Catherine,  Susan, 
and  Augusta  Murray — an  entertainment  about 
which  the  feminine  Colony  was  in  a  fever-heat 
of  joyous  expectation.  Socially  considered, 
there  could  be  nothing  more  awkward  than  a 
break  with  Lord  Dunmore  at  such  a  time. 
But  <c  there  were  giants  in  those  days,"  and, 
with  the  helm  in  their  grasp,  the  Ship  of  State 
sailed  on.  What,  to  such  as  they,  were  these 
petty  questions  of  a  Provincial  Court,  even 
although  its  rules  of  guidance  were  laid  down 
by  a  herald  trained  in  the  royal  etiquette  of 


94  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

England  ?  So  the  die  was  cast,  the  matter 
had  gone  before  the  public ;  and,  to-day.  Lord 
Dunmore,  surrounded  by  the  state  with  which 
he  loved  to  prop  his  imposing  person,  had 
passed  in  his  sumptuous  coach  from  the  Palace 
to  the  Capitol ;  had  ascended  the  stairs  to  the 
Council  Chamber  above  the  Hall  of  Burgesses ; 
and,  there,  with  his  twelve  advisers,  was  in 
process  of  deciding  upon  what  punishment 
should  be  awarded  to  the  outspoken  Provin- 
cials who  had  defied  him. 

From  the  visitors'  gallery  we  may  take  this 
opportunity  to  glance  at  the  men  occupying 
seats  below,  who,  among  them,  hold  the  future 
of  the  American  Commonwealth.  The  Speaker, 
in  a  high-backed  chair,  —  which  the  curious  in 
such  matters  may  see  in  the  Capitol  at  Rich- 
mond, —  has  for  a  background  a  curtain  of 
crimson  stuff,  depending  from  a  gilded  rod. 
On  the  clerk's  table  beneath  him  lies  a  mace, 
a  token  that  affairs  of  State  are  under  way.  In 
this  hall,  nine  years  before,  rang  out  the  mag- 
nificent protest  of  Patrick  Henry  against  the 
Stamp  Act,  that  "  gave  the  first  impulse  to  the 
ball  of  Revolution."  Although  the  lean,  stoop- 
shouldered  young  countryman  in  the  peach- 
blossom  coat,  with  leather  breeches  and  yarn 
stockings,  with  the  unpowdered  wig  and  keen 
twinkling  eyes  —  who  had  then  read  his  famous 
resolution  from  the  bit  of  paper,  torn  out  of 
an  old  law-book,  upon  which  he  had  jotted 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  95 

it  down  —  is  merged  into  the  dignified  and 
honoured  statesman  wearing  a  black  velvet  suit, 
the  prophet  of  the  Revolution  is  still  there. 
There  was  never  one  like  him  on  that  floor,  or 
elsewhere.  If  he  "  spoke  as  Homer  wrote," 
his  eloquence,  like  Homer's,  endures  unchal- 
lenged. Certainly,  upon  no  American  succeed- 
ing him  have  the  Gods  bestowed  a  gift  of  more 
burning  oratory  ! 

Near  Patrick  Henry,  whom  from  time  to 
time  he  consults  with  a  half  cynic  smile,  sits 
Thomas  Jefferson  of  Monticello,  a  man  of  but 
thirty-one,  who  has  nevertheless  just  proved 
himself  the  leading  spirit  of  the  Committee  al- 
ready mentioned,  employed  to  draft  the  reso- 
lution of  defiance  of  the  Ministry.  Jefferson, 
to  be  the  chief  demolisher  of  the  aristocratic 
spirit  of  Virginia,  the  father  of  American  de- 
mocracy, is  of  gentle  blood,  and  shows  it,  in 
spite  of  his  studied  indifference  in  dress.  Of 
manner  courteous,  in  stature  tall,  he  has  a 
ruddy  complexion,  reddish  auburn  hair,  and 
blue  eyes  that  can  be  alternately  soft  with  the 
love  of  humankind,  or  flashing  with  scorn  of 
old-world  prejudice.  Up  in  the  gallery,  look- 
ing down  upon  her  lord,  is  his  bride  of  two 
years'  standing,  "  Mrs.  Martha  Skelton,  that 
was,"  as  the  Virginians  call  her ;  a  beautiful 
and  bewitching  dame,  in  conversation  with  an- 
other fair  ex-widow  (also  wife  of  a  conspicuous 
Burgess),  Madam  Washington  of  Mount  Ver- 


96  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

non,  who  has  here  for  the  first  time  appeared 
before  the  world  after  her  bereavement  of  the 
year  previous. 

Colonel  Washington,  since  his  arrival  in 
Williamsburg,  has  given  the  public  little  op- 
portunity to  know  of  his*  feelings  about  the  vital 
questions  of  the  hour.  On  the  day  when  the 
impulsive  resolution  of  the  Burgesses  passed, 
he,  with  his  lady,  had  dined  in  state  at  the 
Palace,  and  was  received  by  the  Dunmore 
family  with  every  expression  of  cordial  regard. 
Nay,  on  this  very  morning  of  the  fateful  26th, 
had  not  Colonel  Washington  accompanied  the 
Governor,  in  an  early  ride  on  horseback,  to 
breakfast  at  the  latter's  farm  —  and  what,  pray, 
can  that  mean  ?  Thus,  the  gossips  in  the 
gallery,  behind  their  fans;  for  the  Provincial 
capital  is  no  more  free  than  any  other  spot 
where  women  meet  to  comment  on  affairs, 
from  smiling  medisances.  But  Washington  sits 
serene,  his  noble  head  towering  like  the  land- 
mark it  is  evermore  to  be,  biding  his  time  to 
act. 

Of  the  aggressive  men  —  those  who  would 
now,  if  called  upon,  bare  a  sword  and,  clasp- 
ing hands  around  its  blade,  swear  to  resist  op- 
pression to  the  death  —  the  one  first  pointed 
out,  after  Henry  and  Jefferson,  is  Richard 
Henry  Lee  of  Chantilly,  a  contemporary  in 
age  with  George  Washington,  a  courtly  cava- 
lier, whose  appearance  is  marked  by  the  fact 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  97 

that  he  carries  his  right  hand  —  maimed  in 
swan-shooting  on  the  Potomac  —  swathed  in  a 
bandage.  For  some  reason  known  to  the  givers 
of  popular  pseudonyms,  the  habit  has  earned 
for  Mr.  Lee  the  name  of  the  "  Man  with  the 
Silver  Hand."  This  graceful  gentleman,  a 
Royalist  in  descent  and  educated  in  the  old 
country,  had  not  minced  words  in  dealing  with 
the  matter  under  discussion.  He  called  the 
closing  of  Boston  port  "a  most  violent  and 
dangerous  attempt  to  destroy  the  constitutional 
liberty  and  all  rights  of  British  America,"  and 
was  keen  for  certain  measures  disputing  it,  over- 
ridden by  the  moderation  of  the  larger  party  in 
the  House.  From  the  delightful  residence  at 
Chantilly,  in  Westmoreland,  long  known  in  that 
country  as  a  centre  of  cheerful  hospitality,  Mr. 
Lee  has  brought  to  the  convention  his  bevy  of 
pretty  and  merry  daughters,  who,  in  their  great- 
coats of  lutestring,  and  dress-hats  worn  over 
high-piled  hair,  now  cluster  in  the  gallery,  whis- 
pering their  comments  on  the  scene. 

Another  one  of  the  great  leaders  to  whom 
eyes  are  turning  in  expectation  of  revolutionary 
outburst,  is  yonder  dark,  sad  personage,  re- 
served, halting  in  speech  before  his  peers,  but 
known  among  them  as  possessed  of  the  first 
order  of  political  ability,  —  George  Mason  of 
Gunston  Hall  on  the  Potomac,  the  future 
author  of  the  Virginia  Bill  of  Rights.  A  little 
later  in  the  struggle,  he  will  cry  out,  "  If  I  can 


98  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

only  live  to  see  the  American  Union  firmly 
fixed,  and  free  governments  established  in  our 
western  world,  and  can  leave  to  my  children 
but  a  crust  of  bread  and  liberty,  I  shall  die 
satisfied."  Mason,  like  Richard  Henry  Lee 
and  others  here,  has  in  his  veins  a  full  current 
of  the  blood  of  the  supporters  of  Charles  I. 
But  dearer  than  the  phantasms  of  the  kingly 
house  of  Stuart  were  the  principles  just  strug- 
gling into  life,  that  were  to  make  freemen  of 
his  descendants. 

Facing  this  advanced  guard  of  determined 
patriots,  we  see  Edmund  Pendleton  of  Ed- 
mundsburg,  the  head  of  the  conservatives  in 
the  House.  Known  as  the  "Silver  Tongued," 
he  is  an  orator  of  another  stamp  than  Henry 
—  powerful  in  persuasion,  where  Henry  excels 
in  passionate  phillipic  and  dramatic  outburst; 
and  both  are  equally  determined.  But  Pendle- 
ton, whom  Jefferson  called  "  the  ablest  man  in 
debate  I  ever  have  met  with,"  for  all  his  power 
and  grace  and  tender  sentiment  toward  the 
dying  rule;  for  all  that  he  is  to  head  the  new 
Committee  of  Safety  of  Virginia,  to  be  the 
President  of  her  Conventions,  and  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  her  Supreme  Court ;  is  destined  one  day 
to  glide  out  of  politics,  feeling  himself  weary 
and  outworn  by  new  forces  ;  to  remain  during 
his  latter  years  secluded  among  the  books  in  his 
library,  and  the  friends  who  visit  his  plantation; 
honoured,  as  he  deserves  to  be,  but  sad,  as  befits 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  99 

the  survivor  of  ideas   that  have   been  carried 
down  the  stream  of  Time. 

Occupying  the  chair  as  Speaker  of  the 
House,  or  we  should  doubtless  hear  from  him 
some  words  of  bold  import,  sits  the  man  who 
during  his  life  of  fifty  odd  years  has  been  re- 
peatedly put  forward  by  his  fellow-colonists  to 
represent  them  in  the  highest  offices  in  their 
gift;  whom  Washington  loved  tenderly,  and 
upon  whom  he  leaned  for  counsel,  —  Peyton 
Randolph,  son  of  Sir  John  of  that  name,  once 
the  King's  Attorney  in  Virginia.  The  same 
office  was  in  his  turn  filled,  at  the  age  of 
twenty-seven,  by  Peyton  himself,  under  Sir 
William  Gooch,  and  is  now  held  by  Peyton's 
Tory  brother,  John,  during  the  present  cri- 
sis. These  Randolphs  (of  the  Turkey  Island 
branch,  Madam  Poythress  would  have  taken 
care  to  inform  you)  were  educated  at  William 
and  Mary,  studied  law  in  London,  and,  in  one 
capacity  or  another,  were  always  to  the  fore  in 
public  matters.  Peyton,  who  knew  how  to 
restrain  his  ardent  spirit,  had  indulged  it  by 
marching  at  the  head  of  the  Williamsburg 
lawyers,  in  their  sally  to  drive  the  Indians  back 
to  Fort  Duquesne.  He  is  now  the  Chairman 
of  the  important  Committee  of  Correspon- 
dence ;  is  to  be  put  forward  as  Chairman  of 
the  Convention  of  August,  1774;  and,  greatest 
of  his  many  honours,  is  to  be  made  President 
of  the  first  Continental  Congress  that  will  meet 


ioo          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

at  Philadelphia.  A  younger  Randolph,  Pey- 
ton's nephew,  a  handsome  youth  of  twenty- 
two,  called  Edmund,  is  in  the  gallery,  playing 
the  beau  to  the  damsels ;  but  with  the  eyes 
and  ears  of  a  budding  soldier  and  statesman 
wide  open  to  the  questions  of  the  hour.  He 
will  be  aide-de-camp  to  the  first  American  Com- 
mander-in-Chief,  and  Secretary  of  State  to  the 
first  American  President. 

Henry,  Jefferson,  Peyton  Randolph,  Richard 
Henry  Lee, —  these  are  the  real  captains  of  the 
first  revolt  against  the  Crown.  Washington, 
more  deliberate,  is  to  come  forward  to  be  the 
supreme  head  of  their  armies  in  the  field. 

Elsewhere,  on  the  floor  of  the  House  on 
this  memorable  day,  we  may  see  patriots  as 
true  as  any,  without  whose  wisdom  and  aid  the 
nation  could  not  be  shaped.  This  is  the  first 
appearance,  as  a  delegate,  of  Thomas  Nelson, 
the  younger,  of  Yorktown,  one  of  the  several 
governors  of  Virginia  to  be  culled  from  the 
present  gathering,  and  during  the  Revolution 
general-in-chief  of  her  forces  —  of  integrity 
equal  to  his  generosity,  possessing  wealth  that 
he  will  cheerfully  cast  into  the  patriot  treasury ; 
and  to  be  held  in  veneration  by  a  numerous 
descent.  Carter  Braxton,  to  be  "one  of  the 
Signers,"  is  a  wealthy  planter  from  King  and 
Queen  County,  has  been  active  in  politics 
since  1765  ;  he  will  serve  in  the  first  Virginian 
Convention,  and  as  one  of  the  famous  Com- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          101 

mittee  of  Safety,  by  and  by ;  he  will  act  also 
as  pacificator  between  the  mob  and  Lord  Dun- 
more,  in  a  crisis  yet  sufficiently  remote. 

The  swarthy  little  gentleman  with  eyes  that 
can  blaze  like  live  coals,  and  handsome  clear- 
cut  features,  is  Archibald  Gary  of  Ampthill  on 
the  James,  near  Richmond;  the  owner  of  large 
estates  and  iron  works,  which  latter  fact  and  his 
indomitable  spirit  are  to  attach  to  him  during 
the  Revolution  the  familiar  name  of  "  Old 
Iron."  Of  him,  people  whisper,  as  he  moves 
about,  that  he  is  of  the  same  descent  as  that 
flower  of  his  age,  the  illustrious  Lucius  Gary, 
Viscount  Falkland,  who  fell  at  the  battle  of 
Newberry ;  and  such  is  the  fact ;  but  "  Old 
Iron "  hath  always  bid  his  children  strive  to 
emulate,  not  to  live  upon,  their  hereditary 
glories  ;  and  in  days  to  come  he  will  justly  de- 
clare that  a  knight  fit  to  mate  with  his  famous 
kinsman  had  sprung  up  in  the  person  of  George 
Washington.  In  the  Convention  of  1776, 
Colonel  Archy  Gary  will  stand  among  the 
working  patriots  as  Chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  Whole ;  and  the  resolutions  of 
Independence,  of  the  Declaration  of  Rights, 
and  of  a  plan  of  government,  will  through  him 
be  first  laid  before  the  public. 

The  gentleman  wearing  a  green  shade  over 
his  eyes,  with  whom  (C  Old  Iron  "  is  exchang- 
ing oracles,  is  Richard  Bland,  the  antiquarian 
of  his  day  in  Virginia.  Of  him  has  been  left 


IO2          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  following  quaint  description:  "  A  wary,  old, 
experienced  veteran  at  the  Bar  and  in  the  Sen- 
ate ;  has  something  of  the  look  of  old  musty 
parchments,  which  he  handleth  and  studieth 
much." 

Robert  Carter  Nicholas,  who,  like  General 
Nelson,  will  go  out  of  the  Revolution  empty- 
handed  because  of  unselfish  giving  to  the  cause, 
is,  as  the  proposer  of  the  day  of  fast,  a  centre 
of  interest  to  observers.  The  jovial  squire 
who  lounges  at  Mr.  Nicholas*  side,  unable  to 
restrain  a  jest  or  two,  in  spite  of  the  gravity  of 
the  situation,  is  Benjamin  Harrison  of  Berke- 
ley, he  who  carried  off  the  belle  of  Eltham 
Plantation  from  her  train  of  admirers  —  not  so 
long  ago,  but  that,  from  time  to  time,  he  now 
directs  a  lover-like  glance  at  his  lady  in  the 
gallery  !  The  members  chatting  with  George 
Wythe  (Jefferson's  Mentor,  the  lawyer,  whom 
Jefferson  called  "  the  honour  of  his  own,  and 
the  model  of  future  times")  are  the  wealthy 
statesman,  John  Page,  whose  possessions  in- 
clude more  than  thirty  thousand  acres  of  land 
in  different  counties,  with  Rosewell  House,  a 
mansion  the  wonder  of  its  day ;  William 
Cabell,  another  great  landholder  and  ardent 
patriot ;  and  Francis  Ludwell  Lee,  one  of  the 
representatives  detailed  to  help  in  drafting  the 
resolution.  Yonder  are  the  fighting  Lewis 
brothers  from  the  Valley,  of  whom  more  anon  ; 
and  there,  the  martial  figure  of  Parson  Peter 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          103 

Muhlenberg  ("Teufel  Piet,"  of  our  German 
speaking  troops  at  Brandywine),  whose  father 
was  the  founder  of  the  Lutheran  faith  in 
America  —  Muhlenberg,  who,  before  long  will 
preach,  in  his  own  Woodstock  Church,  a  ser- 
mon on  the  text  "  a  time  for  all  things,"  end- 
ing with  "  and  now,  brethren,  it  is  the  time  to 
fight ! "  After  which  dramatic  outburst,  he 
will  pronounce  a  benediction  on  his  flock, 
stride  down  the  pulpit  stairs,  throw  off  his 
gown  that  covers  a  Continental  uniform,  and, 
at  the  tap  of  a  drum  outside  the  church  door, 
be  off  to  take  the  head  of  the  first  regiment 
marching  from  that  region  to  the  front ! 

These,  and  many  another,  till  the  roll  grows 
too  lengthy  to  be  continued  here  in  detail. 

There  are  few  low  tones  in  the  picture. 
From  the  Speaker,  attired  in  his  official  robes 
of  scarlet,  faced  with  black  velvet,  the  uni- 
formed court  attendants,  a  clergyman  here 
and  there  in  black  or  royal  purple,  and  the 
general  company  in  their  velvet  coats,  laced 
and  brocaded  waistcoats,  powdered  wigs  and 
lace  ruffles,  to  the  garland  of  living  roses  up 
above,  the  colour  effect  is  brilliant.  The  scene 
is  a  copy  done  by  a  clever  prentice  hand,  of  an 
original  in  England.  This  meeting  and  the 
Ball  which  follows  will  touch  the  high-water 
mark  of  successful  reproduction  in  Virginia's 
miniature  of  St.  James. 

Upon  the  notable  groups  occupying  the  Hall, 


104          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

bright  eyes  sparkled,  gay  tongues  descanting 
industriously.  It  was  hard  for  the  women,  who 
had  come  there  as  usual,  to  see  and  be  seen, 
to  realise  what  serious  issues  might  be  about 
to  spring  from  the  familiar  gathering.  Madam 
Poythress  and  her  daughters,  who  were  a  little 
late  in  arriving  through  having  been  to  the 
Palace  to  pay  their  respects  to  my  Lady  Dun- 
more  (conspicuously  absent  from  this  occasion), 
had  hardly  dropped  breathless  upon  a  bench, 
when  they  espied,  sitting  alone,  gazing  into  the 
body  of  the  House,  their  Cousin  Rolfe.  May, 
who  saw  he  was  absorbed,  proposed  he  should 
be  let  alone ;  but  Betty,  destitute  for  the  mo- 
ment of  another  string  to  her  bow,  did  not  rest 
until  she  had  succeeded  in  making  the  young 
fellow  look  up,  and  move  obediently  toward 
them.  Both  girls  were  struck  with  the  altera- 
tion for  the  better  in  his  looks.  He  was  alert, 
hopeful,  and,  Betty  thought,  "  almost  hand- 
some." 

"Why,  Rolfe,"  she  exclaimed,  "you  are  as 
bad  as  the  rest  of  the  men.  You  have  scarce 
paid  us  decent  attention  since  first  we  came  to 
town.  Now  sit  down  and  tell  me  all  that's  in- 
teresting." 

"  To  you,  cousin,  or  to  me  ?  "  asked  Rolfe, 
with  a  shade  of  sarcasm  in  his  tone. 

"  Such  ill  manners  as  you  have  got,  cousin. 
Now,  pray  be  civil,  and  tell  me  at  once  who  is 
that  huge  tall  man  who  looks  like  an  Indian 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          105 

chief,  over  yonder,  talking  just  now  with  our 
Cousin  Peyton  ? " 

"That,"  said  Rolfe,  his  face  glowing  with 
hero-worship,  "  is  the  man  of  all  others,  I  shall 
soon  know  best.  For,  since  I  left  you  last, 
cousin,  I  have  had  great  news  from  home. 
My  mother  has  been  brought  by  his  influence 
into  consenting  to  let  me  give  up  the  business 
of  a  pedagogue." 

"Truly?"  said  Betty,  her  attention  dis- 
tracted by  something  in  the  gallery.  "  Did 
you  notice,  May,  that  Molly  Lee  has  on  the 
sweetest  apron  of  taffety  ?  I  wonder,  now, 
would  she  give  me  the  pattern  —  you  were 
saying,  Rolfe  ?  " 

"  That  I  am  going  to  be  a  soldier,  after  all," 
added  the  young  man,  too  excited  to  mind  even 
Betty's  flouting.  "  And  it  is  that  very  Gen- 
eral Andrew  Lewis  who  has  worked  the  mir- 
acle." 

"A  soldier!  Oh!  Rolfe,"  exclaimed  May, 
who  sat  on  the  other  side  of  him.  "  How  glad 
I  am,  how  thankful  —  and  yet  —  but  General 
Lewis,  who  is  he  ?  " 

"  An  old  friend  of  my  father's,  a  militia  gen- 
eral of  Botetourt  County,  and  a  border  war- 
farer  that  the  Indians  fear  as  they  do  the  Bad 
Spirit,  so  many  of  them  has  he  sent  to  their 
last  accounting.  Why,  'tis  said  by  their  wise 
men  that  the  red  clover  springing  in  the  grass 
up  in  our  country  is  dyed  with  the  blood  of 


106         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  redmen  Lewis  has  killed.  By  good  luck, 
he  sojourned  latterly  under  my  mother's  roof, 
and  in  talk  with  her  accomplished  my  heart's 
desire.  He  says  she  hath  given  me  to  him." 

"Tell  me  more,"  begged  May,  eagerly  — 
while  Betty  listened,  a  smile  upon  her  lips,  her 
consciousness  at  large. 

"  They  are  to  have  another  teacher  for  the 
school ;  an  excellent  young  Scotchman,  better 
far  than  I  could  have  been  —  and  in  a  few  days 
the  General  is  sending  me,  express,  to  order 
the  county  to  put  itself  in  a  posture  of  de- 
fence." 

"  Against  Indians  ? "  exclaimed  May,  her 
face  grown  pale. 

"Why,  May,  didst  think  I  am  to  fight 
cornstalk  soldiers  with  a  hickory-switch  ?  The 
government  has  but  just  received  tidings  of 
hostile  proceedings  beyond  Greenbrier,  and  I 
am  —  listen,  Betty,  listen,  May  —  /  am  to 
command  the  scouts  sent  out  to  watch  the 
warrior  path ! " 

"  La !  I  think  'tis  quite  hideous,"  cried 
Betty.  "  It  is  no  warfare  for  a  civilised  sol- 
dier." 

"  Colonel  Washington  did  not  say  so,  when 
he  was  my  age,"  replied  Rolfe,  quietly.  "  Or 
Colonel  Lewis,  when  he  with  his  five  brothers 
fought  under  General  Braddock.  It  was  per- 
haps due  to  my  acquaintance  with  the  country, 
my  habit  of  scouring  the  woods,  that  the  Gen- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          107 

eral  has  imposed  on  me  this  charge.  At  any 
rate,  I  am  to  go  —  and  the  General,  with  his 
brother  Charles  —  a  Burgess  from  Augusta  — 
is  to  repair  to  the  scene  as  quickly  thereafter 
as  may  be.  Did  not  my  own  ears  hear  my 
Lord  Dunmore  say,  yesterday,  that,  when  it 
comes  to  righting  away  the  Indians  from  our 
border,  there  is  no  man  in  all  the  Province  he 
had  sooner  send  there  than  General  Lewis  ? 
But  Andrew  Lewis,  somehow,  does  not  fit  in 
with  His  Excellency,  and  returned  him  but  an 
answer  like  an  Indian  grunt." 

"  But,  Rolfe  —  your  mother  —  my  poor 
Cousin  Poythress  —  how  does  she  —  how  can 
she  —  "began  May,  her  voice  trembling. 

"Why,  May,  this  from  you  !  Don't  you  see, 
don't  you  feel,  that  it  was  meant?  Mothers,  I 
think,  should  look  for  this,  when  they  bring 
men  into  the  world ;  and  whatever  my  mother 
has  not,  she  has  courage  like  a  man." 

"  Does  papa  know  ?  " 

"An  hour  since,  before  he  went  into  Coun- 
cil, I  told  him,  and  he  bade  me  God  speed, 
laughing  such  a  jolly  laugh  it  would  have 
done  you  good  to  hear  it.  'Twas  the  only 
bright  spot  in  these  perplexing  days,  he  said. 
And,  May,  he  has  given  me  Diabolus,  and  I'm 
to  ride  him  into  the  woods.  What  a  mount ! 
There's  not  a  creature  on  the  staff,  or  in  the 
streets,  here,  that  can  hold  a  candle  to  my 
beauty." 


io8          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"And  not  another  man  that  would  be  paid 
to  ride  him,"  said  May,  smiling  through  her 
cloud.  "  Oh !  Rolfe,  the  surprise  of  this  has 
taken  away  my  breath.  Does  Colonel  Wash- 
ington approve  ? " 

"  'Twas  following  a  conversation  with  him," 
replied  the  youth,  holding  his  head  erect,  "  that 
my  General  decided  to  trust  me  to  watch  the 
warrior  path." 

"  Of  course,  then,  it  is  right  for  you  to  go," 
said  May,  drawing  a  long  breath. 

"  Of  course,"  mimicked  Betty.  "  Bless  me, 
child,  anything  is  better  than  Rolfe's  being 

so  whimsically    circumstanced   as    he   was    till 

» 
now. 

"  Why,  May,  'twas  Betty,  not  you,  I  should 
have  credited  with  fears,"  said  puzzled  Rolfe. 
"Yet  here  Betty  speeds  me,  and  you,  I  swear, 
have  tears  in  your  eyes." 

May  was  saved  explanation  of  what  might 
have  equally  perplexed  her  own  girlish  inno- 
cence, by  a  stir  upon  the  floor  below. 

"Lud,  what  can  that  be?"  asked  Madam 
Poythress,  turning  from  her  chat  with  an  ac- 
quaintance. "  What  has  come  over  people,  to 
look  so  monstrous  solemn  all  of  a  sudden  ? " 

"  I  pray  you,  cousin,  do  not  speak  aloud," 
answered  Rolfe,  in  an  undertone.  "'Tis  a 
message  from  his  Lordship." 

A  great  silence  had  fallen  upon  the  court. 
Threading  his  way  amid  the  representatives, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          109 

passed  a  young  officer  of  slight,  distinguished 
figure,  dressed  in  full  British  uniform.  It  was 
Geoffry  Flower,  aide-de-camp  and  acting  secre- 
tary to  the  Royal  Governor,  who,  with  much 
dignity  and  yet  modesty  of  bearing,  delivered 
a  sealed  paper  into  the  hands  of  Speaker  Ran- 
dolph, then  fell  back.  Though  all  were  ex- 
cited by  the  thoughts  occupying  them  on  this 

.    /  .       .  r      &       i  •          i 

occasion,  and    ready    to  resent  anything   that 

flavoured  of  the  tyranny  they  were  discussing, 
—  and  though  it  occurred  immediately  to  some 
of  them  that  the  delivery,  by  the  hand  of  a  sol- 
dier, of  a  message  in  writing  from  the  Executive 
to  the  Legislature  was  an  encroachment  upon 
their  liberties,  an  act  of  intimidation,  conveying 
as  it  did  a  threat  of  the  army,  —  no  one  at  the 
moment  gave  expression  in  words  to  his  per- 
ception of  that  situation. 

After  a  glance  at  the  contents  of  the  mis- 
sive, the  presiding  officer  arose  —  an  example 
followed  by  the  Burgesses  —  and  in  brief  fash- 
ion conveyed  to  the  assembly  an  order  from 
Lord  Dunmore  requiring  their  attendance  in 
the  Council  Chamber,  to  receive  a  communica- 
tion he  desired  to  make  to  them.  Then,  turn- 
ing to  the  aide-de-camp,  the  Speaker  bade  him 
signify  to  the  Governor  that  the  House  was 
prepared  to  meet  his  wishes ;  and  Flower 
thereupon  retired,  as  he  had  come.  At  once, 
the  Speaker,  preceded  by  the  Sergeant-at-Arms 
carrying  the  mace,  put  himself  at  the  head  of 


no          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

a  procession,  forming  two  by  two,  and  the 
Burgesses  left  the  Hall. 

In  an  upper  chamber  of  the  Capitol,  behind 
a  long  table  surrounded  by  the  members  of  the 
Council  —  among  whom  were  the  President, 
Thomas  Nelson  (Senior),  Hugh  Poythress,  Dr. 
Camm,  Ralph  Wormeley,  Robert  Carter,  Robert 
Burwell,  John  Tayloe,  the  Corbins,  —  some  of 
them  men  of  pronounced  English  sentiment, 
—  sat  the  King's  representative.  For  this  in- 
terview, Dunmore  had  panoplied  himself  with 
all  that  he  could  command  of  royal  state ; 
and  his  manner  in  receiving  the  Virginians 
was  more  than  tinctured  by  native  arrogance. 

"  Mr.  Speaker,  and  gentlemen  of  the  House 
of  Burgesses,"  said  he,  rising  brusquely,  "I  have 
in  my  hand  a  paper  published  by  order  of  your 
House,  conceived  in  such  terms  as  reflect  highly 
upon  His  Majesty  and  the  Parliament  of  Great 
Britain,  which  makes  it  necessary  to  dissolve 
you ;  and  you  are  dissolved  accordingly." 

The  curt  announcement  ended,  my  Lord 
soon  bows  to  dismiss  his  hearers.  The  Vir- 
ginians, saluting  in  return,  file,  still  in  silence, 
from  the  room.  Returning  to  the  Hall,  where 
they  have  no  longer  the  right  to  act  in  concert, 
they  adjourn,  as  Burgesses,  without  day.  But 
it  is  understood  that  as  citizens  they  are  to 
come  together  upon  the  morrow,  in  the  Apollo 
room  of  the  Raleigh  Tavern. 

What  followed  is  a  page  of  history.     The 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          1 1 1 

late  Burgesses,  with  Peyton  Randolph  in  the 
Chair,  met  in  the  appointed  place  —  the  scene, 
to  some  of  the  protestants,  of  gay  dances  with 
the  Belindas  and  Myrtillas  of  their  college 
days  —  and  "  declared  that  an  offensive  over- 
ture upon  one  Colony  should  be  considered 
as  directed  to  all  the  Colonies;  agreed  to  in- 
vite the  various  Committees  of  Correspond- 
ence to  send  deputies  to  meet  annually  in  a 
Congress  empowered  to  decide  matters  for 
all;  recommended  the  general  disuse  of  tea; 
and  were  of  one  mind  in  indignation  over  the 
Governor's  misuse  of  his  power  which  hindered 
the  circulation  of  offensive  matter  under  the 
legislative  seal,  but  inoculated  the  whole  Colony 
with  the  poison  against  which  it  was  directed."  l 

1  Extract  from  a  letter  by  Edmund  Randolph.  Of  this  juncture,  we 
read  in  a  letter  from  Jefferson  to  Archibald  Gary,  9th  of  December,  1774, 
rehearsing  the  events  of  the  spring  previous  :  "  Nobody  thought  at  that 
time  of  extending  our  association  further  to  the  total  interruption  of  our 
commerce  with  Great  Britain ;  or  if  it  was  proposed  by  any  (which  I  don't 
recollect),  it  was  condemned  by  the  general  sense  of  the  members  who 
formed  that '  association. "  An  anecdote,  quoted  by  Alexander  Brown  in 
"The  Cabells  and  their  Kin,"  from  the  correspondence  of  N.  F.  Cabell 
with  William  C.  Rives,  is  of  interest  in  this  connection.  Colonel  William 
Cabell  who  "until  the  passage  of  the  Boston  Port  Bill  had  always  had  a 
strong  hope  of  a  final  and  satisfactory  settlement, ' '  was  met  by  a  friend  who 
observed  that  he  was  much  agitated,  and  talking  vehemently  to  his  brother 
Joseph,  with  whom  he  was  walking  arm-in-arm. 

"  Where  now,  Colonel  ?  "  asked  his  friend. 

"To  the  Raleigh  Tavern." 

"And  what  to  do?" 

"No  one  can  deny,"  said  Colonel  Cabell,  "that  the  people  of  this  Col- 
ony have  been  loyal  subjects  5  they  have  borne  their  grievances  with  patience, 
and  have  petitioned  respectfully  for  the  removal  of  them.  All  their  remon- 
strances and  memorials  have  been  treated  with  neglect  and  contempt,  and 
now  we  are  to  be  gagged.  By  the  eternal  God  !  we  must  fight  5  and  I,  for 
one,  care  not  how  soon  !  " 


AS  may  readily  be  supposed,  after  the  meet- 
ing at  Raleigh  Tavern,  there  was  much 
twitteration  among  the  ladies  of  Will- 
iamsburg.  Had  not  they  spent  weeks  in 
preparation  for  the  Ball  at  the  Capitol,  and 
how,  possibly,  could  this  entertainment  be  car- 
ried out,  in  face  of  the  breach  between  the 
Burgesses  and  Lord  Dunmore  ?  On  the  ap- 
pointed day,  society  was  racked  by  conflicting 
rumours,  some  asserting  that  at  the  hour  fixed 
for  my  Lord  and  his  Ladies  to  repair  to  the 
scene  of  festivity,  they  would  find  the  win- 
dows of  the  State  House  dark,  the  doors 
draped  in  mourning,  the  stewards  of  the  Re- 
ception Committee  missing.  Others,  more 
tenacious  of  the  reputation  for  courtesy  among 
the  Virginians,  averred  that  such  a  thing  was 
impossible;  that  the  dance  would  go  on  as  pro- 
posed, but  that  each  of  the  leaders  on  the  Colo- 
nial side  would  appear  wearing  a  badge  of  crape 
on  his  left  arm.  Another  rumour  set  afloat 
maintained  that  the  Governor  and  his  family 
would  allow  matters  to  progress  to  the  eleventh 
hour,  then  pointedly  absent  themselves  from 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          113 

the  fete.  And  so  the  snow-ball  rolled  and 
gathered  in  volume.  By  evening,  still  there 
was  no  one  to  say,  authoritatively,  how  the 
affair  was  coming  out.  Or,  to  be  more  accu- 
rate, there  was  no  one  ready  to  accept  fact, 
until  that  dear  exciting  fiction  should  have 
exhausted  itself  in  rumours. 

The  dwelling  occupied  by  Madam  Poythress 
during  her  season  in  town  was  conveniently 
near  to  the  Capitol.  That  lady's  importance 
in  society,  Betty's  acknowledged  vogue  as  a 
beauty,  the  Colonel's  position  in  the  Coun- 
cil, and  his  intimacy  with  Lord  Dunmore,  all 
conspired  to  turn  the  thoughts  of  the  public 
toward  them  as  a  channel  for  information. 
An  hour  before  the  time  appointed  for  the 
Ball,  therefore,  one  Sedan-chair  after  another 
deposited  its  contents  before  the  Poythress 
front-door  —  its  knocker  kept  in  lively  agita- 
tion by  flunkeys  enquiring  if  the  ladies  would 
be  pleased  to  see  company  —  fair  forms  shook 
out  silks,  satins,  and  hair-powder  under  the 
lustres  of  the  drawing-rooms ;  and  gentlemen 
in  attendance  upon  these  belles,  clicked  heels, 
hugged  their  chapeaux  and  bowed,  until  the 
rooms  were  full.  All,  while  partaking  of  coffee 
and  the  gentlemen  of  liquors,  were  eager  for 
news  of  the  final  arrangements  of  the  evening. 

"Nay,  there  is  no  change,"  said  the  hostess, 
with  decision.  "  It  is  in  my  power  to  give  you 
the  very  latest  from  the  Palace.  When  at  five 


ii4         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

o'clock  I  waited  upon  my  Lady  to  enquire 
after  her  health,  she  was  even  then  in  the  hands 
of  the  hairdresser.  One  of  those  dear  sprightly 
girls,  her  daughters,  came  tripping  into  the 
room,  the  picture  of  good  humour,  to  make  me 
her  mamma's  excuses.  Positively,  the  whole 
family  will  be  at  the  Capitol  on  the  stroke  of 
nine ;  and  to  judge  from  the  animation  of  the 
Lady  Susan's  looks,  they  are  anticipating  with 
pleasure  their  welcome  to  Virginia." 

"  'Tis  strange  the  satisfaction  certain  minds 
derive  from  the  propagation  of  malicious  gos- 
sip— "  began  a  sententious  gentleman,  whose 
speech  was  lost  in  a  tide  of  active  comment. 

"  Mercy  on  me  ! "  cried  a  dame,  wearing  a 
stomacher  and  farthingale  of  rich  brocade,  that 
but  recently  were  tossing  over  rough  Atlantic 
seas;  "I'm  glad  my  gown  —  unpacked  yester- 
day, I'll  swear  —  is  to  have  one  chance  to  show 
itself  in  good  company !  If  we  are  to  believe 
all  these  horrid  men  forecast,  in  a  twelvemonth 
there'll  be  no  coming  to  town  at  all.  Nothing 
for  a  woman,  but  to  be  stuck  down  on  her 
plantation  the  year  round,  dosing  sick  negroes, 
and  superintending  the  cutting  of  their  clothes." 

"  And  think  o'  my  husband,"  exclaimed 
another,  cc  that,  after  the  meeting  at  Raleigh 
Tavern,  must  needs  tell  me  to  make  the  best 
o'  my  finery,  since  not  another  farthing  would 
he  spend  with  the  agents  to  pay  for  London 
furbelows  !  Why,  'tis  unbelievable  !  " 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          115 

"  I  wish  these  weighty  matters  of  politics 
had  been  put  off  till  after  the  Ball,"  cried  a 
pretty  girl  in  a  rose-pink  paduasoy,  with  a 
bunch  of  marabous  over  the  craped  cushion 
of  her  hair. 

"  'Tis  my  complaint,"  answered  the  cavalier 
standing  behind  her  chair,  "  that  unless  a  man 
courses  after  these  extremists  like  the  hounds 
after  Master  Reynard,  they've  no  patience. 
Faith,  for  a  person  of  nice  tastes,  nice  stomach, 
and  nice  habits  of  association  at  home,  'tis  no 
light  matter  to  cut  himself  off  from  civilised 
society,  as  we  are  setting  out  to  do ;  and  be- 
sides, as  Dr.  Camm  observed,  with  whom  I 
had  the  honour  to  dine,  to-day,  f  No  man  can 
force  conviction/ ' 

"  Dr.  Camm  ? "  queried  the  girl,  a  newcomer. 
"  That  is  the  President  of  the  College  ?  The 
one  that,  when  he  went  to  ask  Miss  Betsy 
Hansford  in  marriage,  for  a  parishioner  too 
bashful  to  speak  for  himself,  was  bid  by  the 
young  lady  go  home  and  read  Chapter  XII, 
verse  7,  of  Samuel,  to  find  out  the  reason  of  her 
refusal.  And  when  the  good  Doctor  sought 
his  Scriptures,  'twas  to  read  there,  c  And  Na- 
than said  unto  David:  Thou  art  the  man!' 

"Tea-table  gossip,"  answered  the  gentleman, 
smiling.  "  But  certain  'tis,  the  Doctor  did  not 
marry  till  he  had  left  half  a  century  behind.  I 
can  bear  witness  to  it  that  his  lady  is  well 
trained  in  the  arts  of  housewifery.  But  the 


n6         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

President,  who  is  the  chief  Tory  of  the  Faculty, 
is  just  now  not  to  be  made  happy  by  provi- 
sions, however  skilful,  for  the  material  man  — 
he  foresees  a  struggle  that  will  make  his  posi- 
tion hard  to  bear ;  and,  faith,  everywhere  one 
turns,  'tis  the  same  dark  outlook." 

"You,  too,  among  the  croakers,"  said  she, 
lifting  a  finger  of  chiding ;  "  you,  that  are 
credited  with  keeping  good  spirits  when  all 
the  rest  of  the  world  parts  with  'em." 

"  A  reflection  on  my  parsimony  ?  " 

"  A  challenge  to  your  humanity  !  But  who 
is  it  coming  in  so  late  to  swell  Madam  Poy- 
thress'  levee,  when,  methought,  the  rooms  were 
already  full  as  they  can  hold?  I  believe  —  yes, 
'tis  she  —  none  other  than  Miss  Polly  Antro- 
bus,  who,  they  tell  me,  purchased  from  the 
chief  mercer  of  the  town  all  but  four  yards  of 
the  finest  piece  of  silk  he  has  had  in  stock 
this  age.  The  joke  is  that  Miss  Polly  could 
not  in  reason  use  all  of  the  stuff  secured  ;  but 
fell  on  this  device,  and  put  herself  to  this  ex- 
pense, simply  to  keep  any  other  woman  from 
appearing  at  the  Ball  in  duplicate  of  her.  To 
what  lengths  does  vanity  lead,  Mr.  Thompson ! 
And,  now,  judge  for  yourself  whether  Miss 
Polly  outstrips  the  rest  of  us." 

"  Did  you  know,"  said  a  lady,  leaning  over  to 
whisper  audibly  to  the  last  speaker,  "  we  have 
it,  on  the  mercer's  authority,  the  yellow  silk 
was  all  but  sold  to  Polly's  dearest  friend,  Miss 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          117 

Kitty  Barton,  when,  by  a  ruse,  Polly  snapped 
it  away  from  under  Kitty's  nose.  Yonder  is 
Kitty  —  she  in  plain  white  muslin  with  the 
bloom-coloured  ribands  —  in  the  front  rank  of 
those  Polly  wishes  to  impress,  and  I  dare  swear 
ready  to  tear  out  her  rival's  eyes,  poor  thing !  " 
"  Oh  !  woman,  woman  !  "  exclaimed  Mr. 
Thompson,  indulging  gracefully  in  a  pinch  of 
snuff.  "  In  the  words  of  the  poet:  — 

" '  The  starres  above  would  make  thee  known 
If  men  here  silent  were/  " 

In  the  centre  of  the  apartment,  standing 
beneath  the  full  light  of  the  chandelier,  Miss 
Polly  Antrobus  was  in  process  of  attracting  to 
her  charming  person,  decked  in  the  coveted 
silk,  of  a  pale  amber  hue  relieved  by  large  satin 
flowers  of  pinkish  red,  the  gaze  of  the  whole 
assembly.  To  judge  from  her  air  of  exquisite 
satisfaction,  the  young  lady  had  now  reached 
the  summit  of  earthly  aspirations.  Not  even 
Madam  Poythress  could  boast  of  a  train  so 
rich  in  texture,  so  delicate  in  tint,  as  hers. 
While  Betty  Poythress  had  made  no  more  ef- 
fort for  the  occasion  than  to  come  out  in  a 
plain  white  lutestring  with  blond  ruffles  and 
garlands  of  white  roses,  and  that  everlasting 
string  of  pearls  that  everybody  in  the  capital 
had  seen  her  wear !  As  for  Kitty  Barton,  she 
was  extinguished  utterly,  and  yet  the  girl  was 


n8          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

possessed  to  stand  facing  Miss  Antrobus,  where 
every  one  must  mark  the  contrast ! 

These  thoughts  had  but  time  to  troop 
through  the  brain  of  the  conceited  belle,  when 
she  beheld  her  rival  Kitty  totter  as  if  about  to 
swoon. 

"  Poor  thing,  'tis  too  much  for  her,"  whis- 
pered a  voice  in  Polly's  hearing ;  and  then, 
Miss  Kitty,  sinking  gracefully  upon  a  chair, 
declared  it  was  nothing  —  a  passing  dizziness 
—  if  only  some  one  would  bid  her  maid,  wait- 
ing outside  in  the  passageway,  fetch  her  bottle 
of  smelling-salts  — 

While  all  eyes  were  centred  upon  the  angelic 
sufferer,  the  maid,  who  had  been  summoned, 
appeared  to  apply  the  vinaigrette  to  her  mis- 
tress* nostrils.  She  was  a  small  grotesque  Afri- 
can, her  hair  standing  erect  in  woolly  twigs,  who 
kept  mincing  before  the  company  with  looks 
of  conscious  pride  until  everybody  saw  that  she 
was  dressed  in  a  gown  made  from  the  remnant 
of  Miss  Polly's  famous  amber  silk !  A  titter 
ran  around  the  rooms,  breaking  into  a  laugh; 
and  the  solicitude  with  which  Miss  Kitty  kept 
the  fantastic  creature  at  her  side,  joined  to  the 
looks  of  confusion,  anger,  and  mortification 
darted  upon  them  by  Miss  Polly,  —  who  finally 
withdrew  in  tears  and  left  the  house,  —  showed 
that  the  revenge  of  Miss  Kitty  Barton  was  as 
complete  as  it  had  been  carefully  worked  out. 

Soon,  all  Madam  Poythress'  guests  are  on 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          119 

the  way  to  the  Capitol.  A  glance  into  the 
streets  shows  them  thronged  with  Sedan-chairs, 
coaches,  and  foot-passengers,  hurrying  with  one 
accord  to  the  place  of  festivity.  There  has  been 
no  sign  of  disapproval  from  Lord  Dunmore. 
The  cupola  above  the  Palace  is  alight,  as  on 
Birth  nights  and  other  gala-occasions.  A  crowd 
of  townspeople,  gathered  in  front  of  the  State 
House,  waits  eagerly  to  see  my  Lord's  coach 
appear.  Until  they  shall  behold  his  august 
profile  beside  my  Lady's  nodding  plumes,  fac- 
ing the  two  daughters  who  sit  with  their  aris- 
tocratic backs  to  the  horses,  the  public  will  not 
be  satisfied  that  all  is  well. 

"  His  Excellency  comes  ! "  cries,  at  last,  the 
loyal  populace,  although  there  are  not  a  few 
citizens  to  be  heard  muttering  in  the  back- 
ground, and  a  groan  or  two  for  which  nobody 
seems  to  be  responsible.  The  four  horses 
pull  up  —  the  outriders,  falling  into  line,  become 
statues  as  still  as  that  of  Lord  Botetourt  keep- 
ing watch  before  them.  The  band  plays,  the 
crowd  cheers ;  for  His  Excellency  is  to  them 
still  the  King's  double,  and  his  appearance  an 
event.  My  Lord  Dunmore,  descending  first 
from  the  chariot,  glances  around  him  with 
something  of  apprehension,  or  perhaps  sus- 
picion, allayed  as  the  good  temper  of  the 
throng  declares  itself.  His  Lady  follows;  then 
come  the  rest  of  his  family  and  suite ;  as  the 
cortege  forms  to  go  up  the  stairs,  they  are  met 


I2O         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

by  masters  of  ceremonies,  bowing.  At  the  head 
of  the  steps,  the  stately  Speaker,  who  yesterday 
stood  before  my  Lord  like  a  school-boy  under 
sentence,  offers  his  arm  to  my  Lady.  My  Lord 
walks  on  the  other  side  of  Mr.  Randolph.  The 
Burgesses  receive  them.  The  band  strikes  up 
a  country  dance.  After  a  set  of  honour  in 
which  Madam  Poythress  is  invited  to  join,  with 
Madam  Washington,  and  several  other  ladies 
conspicuous  in  the  Province,  the  Ball  is  fairly 
in  motion. 

On  the  floor  are  seen  most  of  the  men  who 
have  played  parts  in  the  historic  drama  of  the 
preceding  days.  Gossip-mongers  do  not  fail  to 
point  out  that  while  my  Lord  the  Governor 
chats  with  his  Tory  friends  and  a  few  of  his 
Council,  Colonel  Washington  is  the  only  one 
of  the  Burgesses  with  whom  he  appears  to  be 
at  ease.  There  is  no  unbending,  no  attempt 
at  management  of  the  critical  situation,  by  tact 
or  suavity.  It  is  through  his  gracious  wife  and 
daughters  alone  —  whom  he  had  for  so  long 
left  in  New  York  after  coming  to  Virginia  — 
that  the  semblance  of  pleasant  relations  with 
their  entertainers  is  kept  up.  A  bad  lookout 
for  the  political  future,  say  the  wiseacres  ! 

"  Pray,  mamma,"  said  Betty,  returning  from 
one  of  her  dances,  flushed  with  conquest,  to 
her  chaperon,  cc  I  wonder  if  you  have  kept  ac- 
count of  May's  partners." 

"The  first  dance,  Edmund  Randolph,"  an- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          121 

swered  the  mother,  checking  them  off  upon  her 
fingers ;  "  the  second,  Colonel  Washington, 
then  Rolfe,  then  Captain  Flower,  and  now  — 
who,  child,  is  that  great  odd-looking  creature 
in  uniform,  like  a  Colossus,  with  whom  she  is 
going  down  the  middle  ?  " 

"  That  is  Rolfe's  chief,  General  Lewis,"  said 
Betty,  laughing  satirically.  "  And,  as  you  see, 
May  reaches  just  above  his  elbow ;  but  she 
hangs  upon  his  words  in  rapture.  For  a  be- 
ginner in  society,  she  is  very  much  at  ease. 
Now,  mother,  dear,  a  pin  in  my  ruffle,  please ; 
I  am  going  to  sit  out  this  country  dance." 

Madam  Poythress  had  no  need  to  ask  with 
whom ;  since  there,  behind  her  beautiful  child, 
the  acknowledged  queen  of  the  revels,  stood 
Geoffry  Flower,  whose  face  was  eloquent  with 
a  feeling  he  made  no  attempt  to  conquer  or  re- 
strain. Another  man  or  two,  each  hoping 
against  hope  that  Betty  would  relent  and  dance 
with  him,  brought  up  the  rear  of  the  little  group. 

"  You  —  are  you  sure  you  had  better  sit  out 
this  ?  "  asked  the  mother,  feeling  for  the  right 
words.  She  had  never  before  seen  in  the  eyes 
of  her  daughter  what  she  saw  there  now.  Up 
to  the  present,  the  Poythresses  had  treated  the 
Captain's  attentions  to  Betty  as  nothing  more 
than  the  homage  it  was  the  girl's  custom  to 
evoke. 

"  I  think,  dear  —  yes,  I  think,  'twould  be 
best  not  to  go  —  " 


122          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Madam  Poythress  paused.  She  wanted  time 
for  real  thought.  She  knew  by  experience  that 
to  manage  Betty  was  a  thing  requiring  skill  and 
self-control.  In  her  heart  was  working  out  the 
problem  that  to  a  good  mother  is  of  all  others 
the  most  painful  and  perplexing.  Whether  to 
let  the  affairs  of  young  hearts  take  their  natural 
course,  or  to  interpose  the  patent  scruples  that 
may  alter  everything.  But,  ambitious  though 
she  was,  Bessy  Poythress  did  not  lack  tender- 
ness. When  she  looked  again  at  Flower,  she 
had  to  acknowledge  that  in  his  scarlet  coat  and 
gold  lace,  with  his  gallant  bearing,  his  hand- 
some face,  his  air  of  finished  courtesy,  he  was 
an  object  very  pleasant  to  behold  in  prospect 
upon  the  horizon  of  her  daughter's  life. 

To-night,  indeed,  Betty  had,  after  days  of 
combat  with  her  independent  spirit,  leaped  to 
a  conclusion.  The  affair  with  Flower,  begun 
after  her  ordinary  fashion,  had  whirled  her  on 
in  a  race  with  altogether  new  emotions.  Quick 
to  read  her  transparent  little  mother,  she  had  at 
once  detected  the  cause  of  Madam  Poythress' 
unusual  hesitation,  and  decided  to  put  a  stop 
to  it. 

"  I  may  as  well  tell  you,  mamma,"  she  whis- 
pered, bending  over  to  graze  with  her  cool 
blooming  cheek  her  mother's  flushed  one, 
"  that,  for  once  in  my  life,  I  am  going  to  — 
please  myself." 

"Betty  —  oh!   Betty,"  pleaded  her  mother, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          123 

as  the  girl  retreated,  with  a  trill  of  happy 
laughter,  from  her  grasp.  Flower,  who  had 
not  heard  the  conversation  between  the  two, 
saw  only  the  beckoning  of  his  syren,  and  pre- 
pared to  follow.  But  their  way  was  blocked 
by  an  unexpected  obstacle ;  an  obstacle  that 
at  first  caused  Flower  to  fall  into  the  back- 
ground with  a  respectful  gesture  of  salute,  then 
filled  him  with  disagreeable  surprise,  —  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Governor,  accompanied  by  a 
stranger  leaning  familiarly  upon  His  Excel- 
lency's arm. 

Madam  Poythress  arose  from  her  seat,  Betty 
remaining  chained  to  the  spot  beside  her,  the 
faces  of  both  ladies  expressing  the  utmost  as- 
tonishment. For  the  strange  gentleman  was 
none  other  than  their  English  relative,  the  Earl 
of  Avenel. 

It  used  to  be  said  in  those  days  that,  when 
England  had  no  longer  room  for  a  man  within 
her  borders,  she  would  consign  him  to  the 
American  Colonies.  In  Williamsburg,  the 
natural  emptying-place  for  ships  southward 
bound,  the  higher  order  of  travellers  without 
visible  reasons  for  their  peregrinations  were 
apt  to  tarry  longest.  In  the  courts  of  the 
Royal  Representatives  were  continually  appear- 
ing Englishmen  who  had  drifted  out  to  Boston 
or  New  York,  thence  to  Virginia,  and  who, 
after  a  superficial  acquaintance  with  the  best 
houses  and  people  in  the  Colony,  returned  to 


124         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

their  London  Clubs  to  tell  strange  tales  of  life 
among  the  savages.  Perhaps  the  lapse  of  a 
century  and  a  quarter  has  not  entirely  elimi- 
nated this  trait  from  the  British  character  and, 
to  those  retaining  it,  one  might  suggest  the 
couplet  from  an  old  German  play :  — 

"  Wird  man  wo  gut  aufgenommen 
Soil  man  ja  nicht  wiederkommen."1 

But  Lord  Avenel  had  yet  to  prove  himself  in 
this  regard,  since  he  had  but  just  landed  from 
the  ship  Lively  Sally  in  York  River,  and,  hasten- 
ing up  to  town,  had  been  brought  almost  im- 
mediately hither  by  one  of  the  Governor's  staff. 
He  was  a  spare  man,  insignificant  in  appearance 
and  undersized;  and,  viewed  at  that  distance 
from  his  patrimonial  castle,  was  even  less  at- 
tractive to  his  Virginian  relatives  than  before. 
Lord  Dunmore,  after  conducting  him  to  the 
ladies,  did  Miss  Poythress  the  honour  to  remain 
in  conversation  with  her  for  some  little  time, 
during  which  Flower,  having  shaken  hands  in 
a  perfunctory  manner  with  his  late  guardian  — 
whose  touch,  after  Judith's  story,  filled  him 
with  unusual  repulsion  —  now  shared  the  privi- 
lege of  hearing  that  nobleman's  explanation  to 
Madam  Poythress  of  his  appearance  in  the 
Colony. 

1  "  When  once  one  has  been  well  received  in  a  place,  it  is  wise  not  to 
return  thither." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         125 

It  was  a  doleful  tale  my  Lord  told  of  his 
failure  in  health  and  spirits  following  the  loss 
of  his  wife  and  son,  who  had  been  taken  from 
him  the  year  before  by  small-pox,  and  of  the 
recommendation  of  the  medical  gentlemen  that 
he  should  try  a  sea-voyage  to  Virginia. 

"  Though  how  remaining  for  days  and  nights 
at  a  time  in  the  bottom  of  a  ship,  like  Jonah  in 
the  whale's  belly,  could  profit  a  nervous  suf- 
ferer, I've  yet  to  learn,"  he  added.  "  However, 
the  longest  voyage  must  end,  and  here  I  am, 
praying  for  a  welcome  from  my  kin.  And 
Geoff  will  look  out  for  me,  I  know.  Perhaps, 
if  I  should  want  to  make  a  journey  into  the 
wild  country  to  see  for  myself  what  it  is  like, 
my  Lord  the  Governor  will  give  him  leave  to 
go  there  with  me." 

Geoffry,  struck  with  the  lack-lustre  of  his 
kinsman's  eye,  with  the  unusual  appeal  in  his 
voice,  felt  some  compassion  for  the  lonely  man, 
and  proved  it  by  making  an  effort  to  treat  him 
with  cordiality.  Madam  Poythress,  who  had 
by  now  recovered  in  some  degree  from  her  sur- 
prise, observed  that  the  melancholy  lord  kept 
looking  past  her  at  Betty,  who,  proud  of  her 
success  in  winning  smiles  from  the  Governor, 
did  not  object  to  letting  others  witness  it. 
The  little  group  was  next  increased  by  the  ap- 
pearance of  Colonel  Poythress,  whose  duties  as 
a  manager  had  kept  him  apart  from  his  family 
that  night ;  and  a  greater  contrast  than  was  of- 


126         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

fered  by  his  vigorous  manhood  shown  alongside 
of  the  little  shrivelled  Earl,  could  not  have 
been  furnished  in  the  ball-room.  But  Poy- 
thress, together  with  other  gentlemen  whom  the 
news  of  their  noble  guest's  arrival  had  attracted 
to  the  spot,  was  determined  that  nothing  should 
lack  in  the  proof  of  Virginian  hospitality  ;  and, 
accordingly.  Lord  Avenel  was  soon  made  a 
centre  of  cordial  attentions.  To  the  further 
surprise  of  his  relatives,  he  even  went  so  far, 
when  the  next  dance  was  announced,  as  to  ac- 
cede to  the  proposition  of  a  master  of  cere- 
monies, that  he  should  take  the  floor. 

Madam  Poythress,  standing  at  his  elbow, 
rather  welcomed  this  opportunity  of  displaying 
a  partner  who,  although  a  damaged  specimen, 
was  yet  an  undeniable  Earl ;  and  with  a  little 
flutter  was  preparing  to  step  out  upon  the  floor, 
when  Lord  Avenel,  passing  her  by,  presented 
his  fingers  to  Betty  with  the  request  that  she 
would  honour  him. 

Miss  Poythress,  with  a  mocking  smile,  dis- 
closed only  to  Flower,  accepted.  As  Geoffry, 
to  hide  his  vexation,  strolled  away.  Madam 
Poythress  found  herself  for  a  moment  tete-a- 
tete  with  the  partner  of  her  joys. 

"  Look  here,  Bess,"  said  the  Colonel. 
cc  Here's  news  for  you,  Lord  Dunmore  has 
just  been  telling  me.  Our  cousin,  Avenel, 
that  you  remember  had  always  a  mooning 
way  of  admiring  Betty  when  you  were  there, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  127 

now  that  he  is  a  widower,  is  come  out  as 
her  suitor !  My  Lord  says  he  hath  already 
answered  a  letter  of  enquiry  from  Avenel 
about  her  being  disengaged;  and  the  fellow 
has  actually  crossed  the  sea  to  try  for  her ! 
That  stockfish  win  our  beauty !  Think  of 
it!  If  I  was  inclined  at  first  to  knock  Avenel 
down  for  his  presumption,  I  soon  made  my- 
self easy,  remembering  the  girl's  own  knack  at 
getting  rid  of  pretenders  she  doesn't  fancy.  And 
after  all,  blood  is  thicker  than  water,  and  we 
must  be  civil  and  have  Avenel  at  Vue  de  1'Eau. 
So  don't  let  this  cloud  your  pretty  face,  dear. 
What  presumption !  the  fellow's  just  my  age." 
"  No  one  could  think  you  old,  husband," 
said  the  lady,  suavely. 

"  Well,  perhaps  not ;  but  his  impudence  !  " 
"An  Earl  doesn't  consider  it  impudence  to 
offer  to  make  a  commoner  his  Countess." 
"  Why,  Bess,  what  has  got  into  you  ?  " 
"  Nothing,    nothing,    dear.       There    is    my 
Lady   Dunmore    sitting.       Take  me    over    to 
have  a  chat  with  her.     What  a  beautiful  Ball 
it  is,  and  how  well  everything  has  gone !     And 
when  you  have  left  me,  Hugh,  go  and  look 
after  May.      The  child  has  danced  from   the 
beginning  until  now." 

"Very  well.  But,  Bess  —  another  thing. 
Flower,  too,  is  in  the  lists  for  Betty.  I  don't 
know  how  it  strikes  you,  but  he's  the  dearest 
lad  I  ever  saw,  and  has  taken  me  by  storm." 


128          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  I  have  heard  you  say  so/'  answered  his 
wife,  with  reserve. 

"  That  prim  mouth  doesn't  promise  well 
for  Flower's  cause,  I  fear.  But  never  mind. 
What  I  should  like,  would  be  to  stand  in  a 
row  all  of  the  rascals  who  want  our  Betty, 
and  shoot  'em.  But  Flower  —  Flower's  far 
and  away  the  best  she's  got,  excepting  poor 
dear  Rolfe,  and  he  doesn't  count." 

"  No,  Rolfe  doesn't  count.  Do,  pray,  hus- 
band, let  us  give  over  this  Darby  and  Joan 
business  of  chatting  together  at  a  Ball.  *  What- 
ever will  people  think  ?  " 

"That  I  have  the  prettiest  partner  in  the 
room,"  exclaimed  the  gallant  Colonel,  present- 
ing her  his  arm. 

"  Who,  Rolfe,  is  that  dreadful-looking  man 
Betty  is  dancing  with  ? "  asked  May,  in  turn, 
now  pirouetting  with  her  cousin. 

They  had  had  lessons  together  under  a 
"  Terpsichorean  professor"  at  Vue  de  1'Eau 
and  in  Williamsburg,  and  had  done  their 
coupees,  bourees,  fleurets,  bounds,  and  riga- 
doons  in  concert,  many  a  time  before.  May, 
who  felt  as  if  she  were  treading  upon  air, 
resented  even  the  stop  between  dances  for  the 
musicians  to  take  breath. 

"That?  I  don't  know.  He  repels  me, 
somehow.  But  here  they  come  our  way, 
May,  and  Betty  wishes  to  speak  to  you." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          129 

Betty  introduced  to  the  Earl,  first,  May, 
who  gave  him  indifferent  finger-tips,  then, 
"our  cousin,  Mr.  Poythress,"  to  "our  cousin, 
the  Earl  of  Avenel." 

"  Bah  !  He  has  clammy  hands,"  said  May, 
when  she  and  Rolfe  again  pranced  into  the  set. 
"  And  a  masked  eye,  and  a  weary  look.  Poor 
Betty,  to  have  to  dance  with  him  !  I  don't 
think  I  like  Earls,  Rolfe.  I  like  Captains 
better,  such  as  that  splendid  Geoffry  Flower 
—  and  cousins,  too,  when  they  are  nice  and 
don't  get  tired  of  dancing.  Rolfe,  'tis  real 
lace,  mamma's  second-best  Malines,  on  my 
tucker;  and  did  you  notice  my  hair  is  craped 
high  over  a  cushion  like  Miss  Lee's  ?  Til 
tell  you  a  secret  —  a  fat  old  man,  who  is 
married,  told  me  I  look  heavenly,  to-night. 
He  is  thirty,  Rolfe,  and  don't  you  think  he 
might  be  sensible,  by  now  ? " 

"  I  think  he  is  very  sensible,"  said  Rolfe, 
smiling  down  on  her  as  they  paused. 

"  Pshaw !  But  I  can't  scold  you,  even  if 
you  tease  —  I  feel  so  light-hearted.  Yester- 
day, it  was  all  sadness,  and  black  looks,  and 
down  hearts  —  and  now,  everybody  has  put 
away  trouble.  What  lovely  music !  I  wish 
I  could  dance  always.  And  your  step  suits 
me  better  than  any  other.  Oh !  No,  papa 
dear,  don't,  don't,  dont!  Just  a  little  more. 
I'm  not  tired.  I'm  not  hot;  I'm  only  happy. 
And  if  you're  very  good,  and  let  me  be  — 


130          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

when    I've    done  with    Rolfe,    I'll    come    and 
dance  with  you  ! " 

Long,  long  afterwards,  Rolfe  remembered 
the  scarlet  lips  and  cheeks,  the  starry  eyes, 
of  the  little  girl  whose  first  Ball  led  her,  prat- 
tling and  dancing  across  the  threshold  between 
peace  and  war ! 

Three  days  later,  when  the  blaze  of  glory 
from  the  Ball  had  hardly  died  out,  its  gar- 
lands were  hardly  faded,  the  inhabitants  of 
Williamsburg  robed  themselves  in  black,  fasted 
from  dawn  to  sunset,  flocked  into  churches, 
and  abased  themselves  in  penitential  prayer 
before  the  God  of  nations,  beseeching  Him 
to  avert  the  misery  of  civil  war.  In  order  that 
this  movement  might  be  general  throughout 
the  Colony,  the  Burgesses  had  sent,  at  their 
own  expense,  expresses  to  their  respective 
counties  requesting  that  such  services  be  held. 
From  shelves  and  band-boxes  were  brought 
down  the  mourning  robes  set  aside  for  funerals. 
George  Mason  wrote  home  to  his  "  dear  little 
family,"  at  Gunston,  ordaining  that  they  should 
observe  the  fast  and  attend  services  in  black. 
Washington  records  in  his  diary  that  on  June 
first  he  "  went  to  church  and  fasted  all  day." 
And  in  the  autobiography  of  Jefferson,  we  find 
the  following  :  "  The  people  met  generally  with 
anxiety  &  alarm  in  their  countenances,  and  the 


A.  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          131 

effect  of  the  day,  thro'  the  whole  Colony,  was 
like  a  shock  of  electricity,  arousing  every  man 
and  placing  him  erectly  &  solidly  on  his 
centre." 

To  the  Governor,  and  those  of  his  way  of 
thinking,  this  carrying  out  by  the  Burgesses 
of  their  original  scheme  of  the  day  of  fast 
following  the  Ball,  seemed  in  the  highest  de- 
gree audacious  and  defiant.  Lord  Dunmore, 
furiously  angry,  threw  away  all  pretence  of 
keeping  his  temper  with  the  insurgents. 
Whilst  he  brooded  in  his  Palace  over  plans 
to  thwart  them,  the  patriots  met  in  conven- 
tion to  appoint  their  delegates  to  the  General 
Congress  in  September.  And,  lastly,  Wash- 
ington, the  cool,  dispassionate,  long-waiting 
Washington,  seeing  that  the  time  had  come 
to  declare  himself  before  his  fellow-citizens, 
made  at  a  meeting  in  Fairfax  County  the 
enthusiastic  declaration  that  he  stood  "ready 
to  raise  one  thousand  men,  subsist  them  at 
his  own  expense,  and  march  at  their  head  to 
the  relief  of  Boston." 

So,  henceforth,  there  was  no  going  back,  and 
could  be  no  halting  until  the  independence  of 
America  should  be  won  and  made  secure ! 


VI 


WE  leave,  now,  the  tidewater  region  of  old 
Virginia,  favoured  alike  by  climate  and 
immigration  ;  the  safe  luxurious  homes 
of  solvent  landowners  ;  the  series  of  estates  en- 
tailed upon  eldest  sons,  forming  petty  principali- 
ties that  Thomas  Jefferson  was  to  sweep  away 
and  recast  into  one  broad  democratic  com- 
munity of  more  equal  fortunes;  the  manners 
and  customs  of  aristocratic  England ;  the  life,  in 
short,  of  people  mentioned  by  that  vivacious 
old  reporter  the  Rev.  Hugh  Jones,  A.M., 
"  Chaplain  of  the  Honourable  Assembly  and 
Minister  at  Jamestown,"  —  who,  no  doubt,  had 
expected  to  find  them  hanging  to  the  limbs  of 
trees,  by  tails,  but  described  them  as  "  hand- 
some, well-dressed,  compleat  gentlemen,  that 
live  in  the  same  neat  manner,  dress  after  the 
same  modes,  and  behave  themselves  exactly 
as  the  gentry  in  London  ! " 

In  sharp  contrast  were  the  existence  and  sur- 
roundings of  those  settlers  who  had  chosen  to 
make  their  homes  in  the  country  traversed  by 
the  Blue  Ridge  and  Alleghany  Mountains. 
Many  a  young  fellow,  shouldering  axe  and  rifle 

13* 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          133 

and  tomahawk,  had  crossed  the  sapphire  hills 
into  the  primeval  woods  beyond,  and  annexed 
the  land  he  fancied,  by  the  simple  process  of 
asserting  "  tomahawk  rights,"  i.e.  blazing  a  few 
trees  with  his  Indian  weapon  and  marking  them 
with  his  initials.  Then,  a  clearing  made,  and  a 
cabin  built  of  the  logs  he  had  felled,  he  went 
back  and  returned  with -his  bride  sitting  upon 
a  pack-horse  loaded  with  scantiest  household 
necessaries.  If  it  so  happened  that  the  toma- 
hawk rights  were  disputed  by  other  claimants, 
the  difficulty  was  adjusted  by  a  fair  fight  with 
fists ;  or  the  invaders  were  put  to  rout  by  stout 
rods  of  hickory  applied  by  lusty  arms.  The 
Land  Office  and  questions  of  title  were  left  for 
the  future. 

The  food  of  these  Colonial  pioneers  consisted 
of  venison,  bear  and  elk-meat,  wild  turkey  and 
a  variety  of  smaller  game  ;  of  other  than  a  flesh 
diet  they  had  little  but  corn-meal  mush  and 
balm  tea.  When  the  Indian  meal,  carried  on 
horseback  across  the  toilsome  trail,  was  ex- 
hausted, they  had  to  wait  till  the  corn  they 
had  planted  should  bear,  ripen,  and  be  broken 
between  stones  for  use,  or  rasped  on  the  rude 
grater  that  preluded  the  mortar  and  pestle — or 
the  "  sweep,"  a  more  advanced  method  of  con- 
verting grain  into  meal.  One  can  picture  the 
eager  exiles  waiting  for  their  roasting-ears  to 
fill,  and  for  the  shoots  of  their  vegetables  to 
pierce  the  soil !  Not  the  lover  of  Picciola, 


134          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

hanging  breathless  over  the  progress  of  his 
prison-plant,  could  have  put  into  it  more  devo- 
tion !  When  salt  gave  out,  they  did  without  it. 
For  clothing,  they  spun  and  wove  their  own 
flax  and  their  wool  into  linsey ;  and  if  the  flax- 
crop  failed,  or  wolves  carried  off  the  sheep, 
buckskin  and  doeskin  furnished  substitutes  for 
cloth.  The  women  cut  and  sewed  hunting- 
shirts,  trousers,  and  leggins,  and  the  men 
contrived  shoes,  moccasins,  or  "shoepacks,"  the 
most  primitive  style  of  foot  covering,  out  of 
leather  tanned  by  themselves. 

But  the  air  was  pure,  the  climate  invigorat- 
ing. With  years,  with  the  gathering  of  neigh- 
bourhoods, with  success  in  crops  when  the  cabins 
had  put  on  a  look  of  thrifty  comfort,  and  the 
children  born  in  the  wilderness  were  trotting  in 
and  out  the  doors,  means  and  appliances  in- 
creased among  the  settlers.  Water-mills  were 
built,  the  bolting  cloth  for  sifting  flour  sup- 
plied by  parchments  of  deerskin  stretched 
over  hoops  and  perforated  with  red-hot  wires. 
Ploughs,  harrows,  sleds,  barrels,  and  tubs  were 
creditably  fashioned ;  cows,  pigs,  horses,  barns, 
hayricks,  corn-bins,  were  accumulated  ;  to  some, 
the  rewards  of  a  farmer's  life  fell  almost  abun- 
dantly. But  there  was  one  cloud  always  hovering 
on  the  horizon ;  always  threatening  to  increase, 
and  never  entirely  disappearing.  The  women 
with  babies  in  arms,  took  the  thought  of  it  to 
bed  with  them  at  night,  and  worked  under  it 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  135 

all  day  while  their  husbands  were  absent  in  the 
field  or  at  the  chase ;  the  terror  beyond  all  ter- 
rors—  that  of  attack  by  Indians. 

From  the  beginning,  the  wars  between  the 
aborigines  and  the  pioneers  had  been  bitter, 
brutal,  unrelenting ;  the  pages  of  Kercheval, 
Doddridge,  Withers,  and  other  border  histo- 
rians are  black  with  horrors  committed  on  both 
sides  in  the  strife.  For  the  white  man  —  who 
had  to  avenge  torture  worse  than  death  inflicted 
upon  whole  families  of  captured  Colonists ;  who 
had  continually  before  him  the  trail  of  fire,  the 
funeral  pile,  the  burning  splinters,  the  gauntlet, 
—  and  that,  not  for  himself  only,  but  for  his 
wife  and  children,  should  he,  not  his  enemy  suc- 
cumb —  fought  accordingly.  Sleep  broken  by 
a  war-whoop  —  a  torch  put  to  his  home  —  a 
household,  dragged  shuddering  into  the  dark- 
ness of  the  forest,  from  whom  the  mercy  of  the 
tomahawk  was  withheld, — such  images  did  not 
inspire  forbearance  in  the  man  haunted  by 
them,  when  there  came  to  him  a  chance  of  rid- 
ding the  world  of  an  Indian  ! 

After  the  close  of  the  French-Indian  war, 
there  had  been  an  interval  of  peace  between  the 
races ;  and  the  settlers  of  the  beautiful  western 
Virginia  valleys,  and  beyond  the  Alleghanies  in 
the  direction  of  the  Ohio,  had  begun  to  breathe 
freer  of  their  nightmare.  But  in  April,  1774, 
occurred  at  Yellow  Creek,  on  the  Ohio  River, 
an  affray,  the  subject  of  fierce  controversy  in 


136          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Southern  Colonial  history,  and  generally  ac- 
knowledged to  have  been  the  immediate  cause 
of  "Lord  Dunmore's  war."  A  party  of  Big 
Knives  (Virginians),  smarting  under  a  wrong 
done  to  their  traders,  had  attacked  and  cruelly 
butchered  the  family  of  Logan,  a  renowned 
chief  of  the  Mingoes,  who  had  hitherto  shown 
to  the  white  men  only  the  noblest  side  of  the 
savage  character.  The  first  result  of  this  dis- 
astrous action  had  been  a  reprisal  from  the 
exasperated  Mingoes  upon  the  person  of  a 
traveller  named  Jones,  who,  captured  with  his 
party  near  the  town  of  the  Mingo  captain, 
White  Eyes,  was  hacked  to  pieces  and  distrib- 
uted upon  the  bushes  in  the  vicinity,  as  a  warn- 
ing to  his  kind.  From  that  moment,  the  dread 
"Scalp  Halloo"  began  to  resound  again  in  the 
forests  of  the  western  boundary.  War-parties, 
sallying  from  the  Indian  towns,  did  their  worst 
with  hunters  and  wayfarers,  then  proceeded  to 
make  expeditions  to  harry  the  peaceful  settlers 
in  their  homes.  Again  were  men  at  the  plough 
snatched  away  to  torture  or  imprisonment, 
leaving  hapless  families  to  the  mercy  of  their 
foes;  again  were  women  and  children  —  fortu- 
nate enough  to  be  forewarned  —  sent  hastily 
into  the  shelter  of  the  stockaded  forts  built  at 
intervals  along  the  border ;  again  fire  and  the 
tomahawk  ruled  supreme  in  Indian  camps,  and 
from  their  tent  poles  fluttered  fringes  of  gory 
scalps. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          137 

At  this  crisis,  one  of  the  scouting  parties, 
sent  forward  by  government,  was  traversing  a 
lonely  wilderness.  'Since  daybreak,  they  had 
struggled  through  underbrush  in  search  of  a 
lost  trail ;  the  summer  sun  was  high  in  the 
heavens  when  their  captain  came  crashing  back 
to  the  spot  where  the  party  had  been  making 
a  half-hearted  bivouac  —  for  it  was  forty-eight 
hours  since  they  last  tasted  food  —  with  the 
announcement  that  he  had  at  length  struck  the 
settler's  path  leading  to  their  destination,  a 
house  in  a  valley  where  they  might  eat  and 
drink  and  rest  before  going  further  on  their 
way. 

They  were  a  band  of  five  volunteers  under 
Rolfe  Poythress ;  all  older  than  he,  mostly 
neighbours,  known  and  trusted  since  his  child- 
hood, and  at  present  occupied  in  cutting  strips 
from  a  deerskin  upon  which  to  chew  as  they 
resumed  the  march.  The  glorious  news  of 
shelter  and  refreshment  within  reach  put  into 
them  fresh  strength,  and  joyfully  they  rose  to 
their  feet. 

"  I  allus  said  you  wus  a  heap  sight  better' n 
a  hound,  Cap'n,"  observed  a  tall  young  moun- 
taineer named  Adams,  who  had  grown  up  with 
Rolfe. 

Rolfe  did  not  waste  words  in  answer  —  and, 
breaking  camp,  the  men  strode  after  him, 
emerging  soon  upon  a  plateau  whence  they 
could  plainly  see  the  narrow  zig-zag  of  a  path 


138          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

leading,  at  some  distance  farther  on,  down  from 
the  ledge  to  a  fertile  valley  nestling  between 
protecting  walls  of  rock.  It  was  a  grand  view 
that  burst  upon  them  at  this  exit  from  the 
woods.  Far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  there 
were  woods  clothing  heights,  mountains  beyond 
mountains  —  a  sea  of  ridges,  growing  bluer  as 
they  receded  from  the  eye,  forty  or  fifty  miles 
away,  till  blent  with  the  azure  of  the  sky. 
Down  in  the  rich  verdure  of  the  valley  ran  the 
gleaming  thread  of  a  little  river,  at  which  Rolfe, 
pausing,  looked  approvingly. 

"  I  fished  there,  last  year,"  he  said,  "  and  I 
thought  I  couldn't  mistake  about  this  trail.  A 
little  farther  along  the  ledge  there's  an  easy 
drop  from  the  rocks  into  the  bushes  and  'twill 
be  a  short  cut  to  reach  the  path.  I  remember 
'twas  at  that  spot  I  first  espied  Robertson's,  or, 
at  least,  the  smoke  from  his  chimney  curling 
above  the  trees." 

"'Twill  be  a  welcome  sight,  Cap'n,"  said 
Adams,  "  for  men  that  have  not  had  the  luck 
to  kill  a  turkey,  or  so  much  as  a  snake  since 
day  before  yesterday.  I  reckon  we  can't  go 
much  further  on  a  diet  o'  sassafras  leaves  and 
buck  leather." 

Pushing  ahead,  a  ten-minutes  walk  brought 
them  to  the  point  indicated  by  their  leader. 
While  the  men,  with  the  glee  of  school-boys, 
prepared  to  let  themselves  down  from  the  rocky 
bastion,  Rolfe,  who  had  been  searching  the 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          139 

valley  with  his  gaze,  stopped  them  with  a  gest- 
ure. He  wanted  to  make  sure  before  he  spoke. 

"  Robertson's  house  is  there —  was  there  !  " 
he  said  hoarsely,  a  shade  of  pallour  coming 
under  the  bronze  of  his  cheek.  "  As  you  see, 
there  is  smoke,  but  not  from  a  chimney." 

Involuntarily  the  men  stiffened  and  drew 
together.  At  that  moment,  a  cock  crew  in  the 
clearing  toward  which  all  eyes  were  strained. 
This  homely  note  was  followed  by  the  bleating 
of  a  calf. 

"  Come  on.  We  may  not  be  too  late," 
said  Rolfe,  briefly. 

Forgetful  of  hunger  and  fatigue,  the  scouts, 
falling  one  by  one  into  the  jungle  of  moun- 
tain laurel  beneath  them,  picked  their  way 
without  noise  along  the  slope  and  to  the  path. 
Not  a  sound  broke  the  stillness  of  the  scene, 
but  the  repeated  bleating  of  the  calf.  Crossing 
the  river  upon  the  stones  strewing  its  bed,  they 
passed  through  a  bit  of  half-cleared  woods,  into 
a  rocky  pasture  where  a  couple  of  sheep  were 
grazing,  and  there  stopped  appalled. 

There  was  no  room  to  doubt  the  fate  of  the 
house  and  family  of  Robertson.  All  that  re- 
mained was  a  heap  of  smouldering  ashes  and 
charred  floor  beams,  under  a  grove  of  burnt  or 
smoke-blackened  pines.  On  either  side  of 
what  had  been  the  doorway,  stakes  stuck  into 
the  ground  bore  that  which  is  best  left  unde- 
scribed. 


140         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Rolfe,  to  whom  the  simple,  kindly  owners 
of  the  place  had  given  welcome  the  year  before, 
examined  the  premises  with  black  fury  in  his 
heart.  Stooping  over  the  door-stone,  he  lifted 
from  it  an  Indian  war-club,  to  which  was  se- 
cured, by  plaited  horsehair,  a  letter,  written,  to 
his  surprise,  in  a  fair  English  hand. 

"As  I  supposed  —  a  c  War  Message/  "  he 
said,  glancing  at  the  sheet ;  then  read  it  aloud, 
as  follows  :  — 

"  CAPTAIN  CRESAP  :  — 

"  What  did  you  kill  my  people  on  Yellow  Creek, 
for  ?  The  white  people  killed  my  kin  on  Conestoga 
a  great  while  ago,  and  I  thought  nothing  of  that. 
But  you  killed  my  kin  again  on  Yellow  Creek  and 
took  my  cousin  prisoner.  Then  I  thought  I  must 
kill,  too,  and  I  have  been  three  times  to  war,  since; 
but  the  Indians  are  not  angry  —  only  myself. 

"CAPTAIN  JOHN  LOGAN." 

"  Logan !  It  is  Logan,  then,  who  is  on 
the  war-path,"  exclaimed  the  young  captain. 
"  Good  God !  What  have  those  men  to 
answer  for,  who  fired  the  shots  at  Yellow 
Creek?" 

While  his  scouts,  who,  ransacking  the  ruins 
of  a  hen-house,  had  unearthed  some  fowls 
caught  in  the  flames  and  cooked  in  their 
feathers,  fell  eagerly  upon  this  food,  Rolfe, 
after  swallowing  a  few  mouthfuls,  and  quench- 
ing his  thirst  at  the  river,  thought  over  the 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          141 

grave  situation.  His  plain  duty  was,  at  once, 
to  carry  Logan's  message  and  token  to  the 
county  lieutenant  at  Fincastle,  many  miles 
away ;  and  to  ask  for  soldiers  to  guard  those 
parts  of  this  unhappy  country  not  already 
fallen  a  victim  to  the  Indians  on  the  war-path. 
But  his  thoughts  had  flown  to  a  little  seques- 
tered cabin  in  the  woods,  out  of  the  line  the 
savages  would  be  likely  to  take  —  another 
stopping-place  of  his  expedition  of  the  year 
before.  In  that  humble  abode  dwelt  a  widow, 
sore  bestead  to  wring  sustenance  from  the  soil, 
with  her  two  daughters,  and  a  son  of  fourteen, 
a  manly  lad  who  had  acted  as  Rolfe's  guide. 
Common  humanity  called  upon  him  to  go  to 
look  after  them  and,  if  possible,  convey  them 
to  a  fort  for  refuge.  To  Adams,  therefore, 
the  stalwart  and  trusty  mountaineer,  who  could 
go  at  a  dog's  trot  all  day,  and,  hardly  feel 
fatigue ;  who  knew  the  secrets  of  the  wilder- 
ness almost  as  well  as  Rolfe  did ;  who,  upon 
reaching  a  horse  and  a  country-road,  would 
ride  until  he  dropped,  before  slacking  speed  in 
the  delivery  of  the  message,  —  was  entrusted 
Logan's  club  and  letter ;  and  Adams,  accord- 
ingly, set  off  on  the  return.  Then  the  five 
who  were  left  to  follow  up  the  war-trail,  made 
speed  to  take  a  by-path  known  to  Rolfe,  con- 
necting Robertson's  farm  with  that  of  the 
Widow  Baker. 

A  few  miles  of  easy  going  brought  them  to 


142          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  clearing,  before  entering  which  Rolfe,  keep- 
ing back  his  men,  went  ahead  to  reconnoitre. 
Alas !  an  ominous  hush  brooded  around  the 
spot !  In  a  green  ring  of  turf,  trampled  and 
blackened,  another  pile  of  ashes  was  sending  up 
dull  puffs  of  smoke.  There  was  one  difference. 
In  this  case,  there  was  no  horrid  spectacle  such 
as  had  sickened  them  in  the  other.  Nothing 
was  to  be  seen  of  any  human  being. 

"The  devils  have  carried  them  away/1  re- 
marked the  Captain,  after  a  brief,  dreadful 
silence.  The  shock  of  this  disappointment 
quite  took  the  nerve  out  of  him ;  and,  throw- 
ing himself  exhausted  on  the  ground,  he  pon- 
dered over  the  course  it  was  now  best  for  him 
to  take.  To  push  further  with  four  men 
toward  the  Indian  country,  seemed  madness; 
and  yet,  if  there  were  a  chance  to  rescue  these 
unfortunates,  where  was  the  man  among  them 
who  would  hold  back  ? 

While  their  captain  thought  it  out,  the  men 
were  busy  exploring  the  poor  remains  of  the 
widow's  habitation  with  the  hope  of  finding 
food.  Rewarded  by  the  joyful  discovery  of  a 
bag  of  dried  corn,  and  a  few  hens'  eggs,  with 
some  young  potatoes  from  the  field,  their 
spirits  rose  magically.  With  no  great  effort, 
a  fire  was  kindled,  the  scouts  laughing  and 
joking  over  their  camp  cookery,  as  if  the  trag- 
edy of  the  place  had  never  been.  Rolfe,  only, 
although  he  ate  with  them,  was  a  prey  to  gloom. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          143 

He  had  but  just  resolved  to  go  on,  cost  what 
it  might,  when  a  movement  in  the  underwood 
at  the  edge  of  the  clearing  attracted  him. 
Rifle  to  shoulder  he  was  about  to  fire,  but 
was  stopped  by  a  pitiful  cry  for  mercy ;  and  a 
figure,  tattered  with  briars,  bleeding,  soiled  yet 
still  recognisable  as  a  white  boy,  staggered  out 
of  the  thicket,  ran  toward  them,  and  fell  sense- 
less at  their  feet. 

Rolfe,  who  had  recognised  the  widow's  son, 
succeeded  in  restoring  him  to  consciousness ; 
and  when  the  lad  could  tell  his  wretched  tale, 
the  men  listened  to  it  in  swelling  wrath  and 
pity.  Young  Baker  had  been  hoeing  in  the 
potato  patch,  the  day  before,  when  the  Indians 
fell  upon  their  house  like  a  lightning  flash  in  a 
clear  sky.  He  had  not  been  able  to  reach  his 
mother  and  two  sisters,  who  were  seized,  bound, 
and  carried  away,  the  stock  driven  before  them, 
the  house  and  buildings  fired ;  and  then  the 
lad,  who  expected  to  be  tomahawked  upon  the 
spot,  was  loaded  down  with  a  Dutch  oven  be- 
longing to  his  mother,  which  his  captor,  a  young 
brave,  ordered  him  to  carry,  although  he  could 
hardly  stagger  beneath  its  weight.  In  this  way, 
they  had  walked  for  a  long  time,  and,  at  the 
first  camp,  Baker  had  pleaded  in  vain  for  leave 
to  rejoin  his  mother  and  sisters.  The  Indians, 
giving  him  to  understand  that  he  would  never 
see  them  again,  had,  after  eating,  settled  them- 
selves to  look  on,  while  they  made  the  lad 


144          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

collect  wood  and  dead  leaves  to  lay  in  a  circle 
round  a  tree.  Baker,  who  like  other  Valley 
boys,  had  heard  of  the  torture  this  preluded, 
again  gave  himself  up  for  lost.  But  as  his 
captors  were  beginning  to  lash  him  with  a  loose 
thong  to  the  tree,  intending  to  make  him 
run,  back  and  forth,  around  it  in  a  circle  of 
fire  until  he  should  drop  dead,  they  were  in- 
terrupted by  the  arrival  of  a  great  chief,  who 
declared  the  boy  was  his.  This  chief  proved 
to  be  none  other  than  the  famous  Logan, 
known  to  have  previously  saved  in  the  same 
way  a  white  man  named  Robinson,  around 
whose  waist  he  had  tied  a  belt  of  wampum,  in 
token  that  the  prisoner  was  not  to  be  harmed. 
Upon  Logan's  interposition,  Baker  had  been 
put  in  charge  of  an  old  squaw,  who  tied  up 
his  wounds  and  cuts  with  a  healing  salve,  gave 
him  to  eat  and  drink,  and  put  him,  still  bound, 
to  sleep  in  her  tent.  In  the  night,  Baker  had 
received  a  visit  from  Robinson,  Logan's  adopted 
"  cousin,"  who  told  him  it  was  he  whom  Logan 
had  directed  to  write  the  letter  attached  to  the 
war-club,  and  that  it  was  done  with  an  ink  made 
of  gunpowder,  under  Logan's  dictation,  who 
informed  Robinson  it  was  to  "  be  left  in  some 
house"  where  he  would  "kill."  Robinson 
then  advised  Baker  that  although  Logan  was 
of  a  high  and  noble  temper,  he  had  been  often 
inflamed  by  drink  since  the  recent  cruel  mur- 
ders of  his  kin,  was  moody,  fitful,  and  could 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          145 

not  be  relied  upon  always  to  stand  Baker's 
friend.  So  Robinson  loosed  Baker's  cords, 
gave  him  a  tomahawk,  and  left  him  ;  and  the 
boy,  rallying  all  his  courage,  killed  the  sleep- 
ing Indian  who  lay  outside  his  tent,  and  ran 
away. 

The  little  fellow  had  but  reached  this  point 
of  his  woeful  story,  when  a  whoop  came  from 
the  underbrush,  rifles  cracked,  and  the  lad  fell 
dead  across  Rolfe's  knees.  Two  Indians,  who 
had  tracked  the  runaway  to  his  home,  seeing 
him  under  armed  protection,  had  taken  this 
method  to  relieve  their  disappointment.  As 
their  mahogany  forms  withdrew  into  the  dense 
woods,  Rolfe,  who  had  escaped  as  by  a  miracle 
the  bullet  meant  for  him,  started  in  pursuit. 
But  the  Indians  outran  them,  and  were  soon 
beyond  a  present  overhauling. 

"It  shall  go  hard  with  me,  though,"  said 
the  Captain,  setting  his  teeth  grimly,  "if  be- 
fore to-morrow,  I  do  not  make  somebody  pay 
the  price  of  that  dead  boy's  wrongs." 

His  men  were  of  one  mind  with  him.  After 
this,  there  was  no  returning  without  a  taste  of 
Indian  blood.  So,  leaving  the  corpse  across 
the  doorstep  of  his  ruined  home,  they  kept  on 
the  march  all  night.  Toward  morning,  they 
espied  what  seemed  to  be  a  small  encamp- 
ment in  the  woods  and,  hardly  trusting  them- 
selves to  breathe,  awaited  daybreak  to  ascertain 
the  number  of  the  foe. 


146          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

With  the  first  pink  of  dawn,  the  Indians 
stirred,  stretched  themselves,  arose,  and  stood 
around  their  fire.  A  dozen  of  them,  Rolfe 
counted  from  his  ambuscade.  Then,  uttering 
a  cry,  wild  as  the  "Ahoi ! "  of  the  Viking,  he 
opened  fire.  A  hail  of  rifle-balls  tattered  the 
young  green  of  intervening  leaves.  Five  Ind- 
ians—  one  a  woman  —  fell  dead,  the  remainder, 
surprised  with  empty  guns,  which  they  left 
upon  the  ground,  flying  like  the  wind. 

Such  food  as  had  awaited  the  Indians  for 
their  morning  meal  fell  to  the  share  of  their 
victors,  and  put  fresh  life  into  the  weary 
rangers.  The  finding  of  the  Dutch  oven  in 
the  bushes  by  the  camp  left  no  doubt  that 
this  was  the  band  they  sought ;  and,  presently 
they  came  upon  the  body  of  the  brave  slain 
by  Baker,  lying  in  a  sort  of  state,  preparatory 
to  removal. 

"  So  much  for  little  Baker's  score,"  said  the 
Captain,  drawing  a  breath  of  relief.  But  he 
could  not  rid  himself  of  the  thought  of  the 
hapless  women.  The  fancy  of  Betty  and  May 
in  such  predicament  crept  into  his  brain  and 
haunted  it.  If  there  were  but  one  chance  in 
a  hundred  of  rescuing  the  poor  souls,  he  would 
not  hold  back  from  attempting  it.  And  again 
the  scouts  agreed  with  him. 

They  spent  the  day  at  rest  in  a  secluded 
thicket,  sleeping  and  watching  by  turns.  Dried 
venison  from  the  Indian  camp  they  had 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          147 

brought  away  in  abundance  for  another  hearty 
meal.  That  night,  also,  was  passed  in  creeping, 
listening,  holding  their  breath  at  the  crackle  of 
a  twig. 

At  last,  at  daybreak,  their  stealthy  progress 
was  rewarded  by  the  flicker  of  a  distant  camp- 
fire.  Rolfe,  his  heart  thumping  his  ribs  with 
excitement,  strained  his  gaze  to  ascertain  the 
size  of  the  force;  and,  leaving  the  others  with 
loaded  rifles  pointed  toward  the  camp,  he 
skirted  it  cautiously  in  the  rear.  As  the  faint 
light  grew  brighter  in  the  wood,  he  saw  dis- 
tinctly that  the  Indians,  how  many  he  knew 
not,  were  asleep.  Presently  an  old  woman 
who  had  been  putting  fuel  on  the  fire  stepped 
back  into  a  rude  shelter  made  of  blankets,  and 
called  some  one  within  to  come  to  her  assist- 
ance. A  girl  with  loose  yellow  hair,  moving 
like  a  sleep-walker,  emerged  from  the  tent,  in 
whose  pallid  face  Rolfe  recognised  Peggy 
Baker ;  and,  putting  an  iron  pot  into  her 
hands,  the  squaw  directed  her  to  go  to  the 
water-side  and  fill  it. 

The  girl  obeying  mechanically,  Rolfe  watched 
her  go  down  a  path  concealed  by  bushes,  to  the 
stream;  improving  his  opportunity,  he  followed 
and,  seizing  her  in  his  arms,  besought  her  to 
make  no  sound,  if  she  would  not  sacrifice  them 
both.  Then,  carrying  her  back  by  the  way 
he  had  come,  he  rejoined  his  men,  and  they  at 
once  began  the  retreat. 


148          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

There  was  not  a  minute  to  be  lost,  since  at 
the  first  alarm  of  the  girl's  absence,  a  search 
would  be  made  for  her.  Picking  their  way 
with  practised  feet  over  scattered  rocks,  and 
bog  and  briar,  half-dragging,  half-carrying  the 
girl  between  them,  they  ascertained  from  her 
that  the  Indians  had  found  out  the  killing  of 
their  men  the  day  before,  and,  in  consequence, 
were  to-day  to  attack  a  settlement  of  farmer- 
folk  some  miles  further  up  the  valley.  A 
question  as  to  the  whereabouts  of  her  mother 
and  sister  brought  Rolfe  a  ghastly  answer. 
This  one  had  been  spared,  because  of  her 
youth  and  vigour,  to  be  a  servant  to  the 
squaws. 

With  these  facts  in  mind,  the  young  Cap- 
tain realised  that  his  chances  of  escape  with 
the  rescued  prisoner  were  very,  very  slight. 
Peggy  Baker,  who  had  now  recovered  from 
the  shock  of  her  friendly  abduction,  begged 
to  be  allowed  to  march  beside  them,  and 
proved  herself  to  be  as  plucky  as  she  was 
patient.  As  their  course  on  the  retreat  ran 
parallel  with  the  river,  here  widened  between 
steep  banks,  and  swollen  with  recent  heavy 
rains,  there  was  no  hope  of  escaping  pursuit ; 
and,  before  long,  they  knew  the  Indians  were 
upon  their  trail. 

When  the  sound  of  the  battle  yell  drew 
nearer,  Rolfe  braced  himself  for  action.  Giv- 
ing the  girl  a  weapon,  and  bidding  her  fly  for 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          149 

her  life  in  the  direction  of  her  home,  he  put 
his  men  into  ambuscade  behind  a  mass  of 
brushwood  and  fallen  trees. 

cc  Swift  death,  an  honest  bullet  in  the  brain, 
who  fears  them  ?  "  he  said,  as  the  horrid  band 
approached.  a'Tis  the  stake,  boys,  the  burn- 
ing splinters,  we  have  got  to  fight,  so  —  fire  !  " 

Two  ^  of  Rolfe's  men  fell  in  the  ensuing 
skirmish  ;  but  owing  to  their  protected  situa- 
tion, not  until  after  the  scouts  had  strewn  the 
forest  carpet  with  dead  braves.  A  party  of 
Indians  coming  around  to  the  rear  dislodged 
them  and,  with  foes  on  both  sides,  the  Vir- 
ginians at  last  gave  up  the  fight  and  fled,  two 
of  the  survivors  escaping  in  the  woods.  Rolfe, 
the  daring  leader,  who  had  worked  such  havoc 
in  the  Indian  ranks,  the  especial  object  of  their 
wrath,  was  cut  off  and  driven  before  a  whirl- 
wind of  savage  runners.  On  the  river's  bank, 
near  the  steep  verge  of  the  stream,  here  a  boil- 
ing torrent,  the  Mingoes,  now  certain  of  their 
prey,  threw  down  their  guns,  and  moved  up 
to  close  in  a  ring  around  him,  flourishing  their 
tomahawks.  But  Rolfe,  casting  a  glance  at 
the  chasm,  exceeding  twenty  feet  in  breadth, 
gathered  his  full  strength,  and,  suddenly  run- 
ning to  the  edge  of  the  bluff,  with  the  activity 
of  a  panther  leaped  out  of  their  grasp.  When 
the  Indians,  crowding  to  the  cliff,  looked  down, 
expecting  to  see  their  enemy  struggling  helpless 
in  the  flood,  they  beheld  him,  instead,  landed 


150          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

safely  upon  his  feet  upon  the  lower  shore, 
opposite,  where,  quick  as  light,  he  turned  to 
confront  them  with  his  rifle. 

At  no  moment  had  Rolfe  considered  his 
peril  greater  than  at  this.  But  while  the  sav- 
ages made  haste  to  pick  up  their  own  guns,  a 
chief  of  lofty  figure  who  had  been  foremost  in 
the  pursuit,  stood  on  the  edge  of  the  chasm, 
and  waved  them  back,  calling  out  to  Rolfe  in 
English :  — 

"  Good  jump !     Captain  make  good  jump ! " 

Rolfe  lowered  his  rifle,  in  astonishment. 
Although  he  had  never  laid  eyes  upon  the 
son  of  Shikellemus,  who  had  so  long  been  in 
the  confidence  of  the  government  and  of  the 
Six  Nations,  as  an  arbitrator  of  disputes,  he 
could  not  doubt  this  stately  being  was  the 
famous  Logan. 

"You  go  this  time  safe,  Captain,"  resumed 
the  chief.  "You  track  me,  you  kill  my  men, 
you  steal  my  prisoner,  but  in  fair  fight.  You 
fought  well ;  you  jumped  like  a  deer,  and  you 
are  fit  to  be  a  brave ;  so  I  let  you  go.  But 
tell  your  people  that  I  have  not  done  killing, 
yet.  If  I  believed  in  them  I  would  not  kill, 
but  I  believe  no  more.  The  next  time  I  get 
you  while  I  am  killing,  you  do  not  go  free." 

So  saying,  the  Indian  turned  and  stalked 
away,  followed  by  his  band.  In  the  deep  for- 
est, Rolfe  heard  presently  arising  the  death 
chant  over  the  bodies  of  their  slain. 


VII 


THE  portion  of  the  great  woods  in  which 
Rolfe  now  found  himself  isolated  was, 
on  his  side  of  the  river,  almost  untrod- 
den by  the  foot  of  man ;  but,  inured  to  soli- 
tude in  nature,  to  nights  and  days  at  large,  to 
finding  his  way  by  guidance  of  the  sun  and 
stars,  this  did  not  serve  to  depress  him.  His 
hope  that  poor  Peggy  Baker  and  his  two 
surviving  comrades  had  escaped  unhurt,  the 
possibility  that  the  Indians  were  now  moving 
in  an  opposite  direction  from  the  fugitives, 
and  a  determination  to  cross  the  stream  again 
and  return  to  the  settlements  as  soon  as  he 
should  think  the  attempt  safe,  relaxed  for  a 
time  the  tense  strain  of  his  nerves.  That  he 
should,  meantime,  be  counted  by  his  friends 
the  victim  of  a  miserable  death,  was  a  fore- 
gone conclusion.  But  Rolfe  could  afford  to 
be  cheerful  about  that! 

Presently,  for  the  first  time,  he  became  con- 
scious of  a  wound  in  the  hip  and  a  twist  in 
the  ankle,  these  bars  to  progress  making  him 
feel  very  grave.  He  limped  for  a  while, 
paused,  limped  more  painfully,  and  then  sat 


152          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

down  on  a  bank  of  moss,  covering  the  roots 
of  a  great  pine  tree  that  hung  its  branches 
over  the  river's  brink.  Quenching  his  thirst 
by  crawling  down  to  scoop  water  with  his 
hand,  he  returned,  yielded  to  the  invitation  of 
the  verdant  couch  beneath,  and  sank  into  its 
deep  elastic  mattress.  Here  subtle  sleep  over- 
took him,  and  tried  to  blot  out  all  cares  from 
his  brain ;  but  fever,  interposing,  sent  new  im- 
ages and  fancies  trooping  through  it.  Amid 
the  scenes  of  black  tragedy  that  haunted  him, 
his  dreams  were  filled  with  his  Cousin  Betty. 
Betty  mocking,  Betty  smiling,  enticing  in  her 
ripe  young  beauty,  then  evading  him  as  he 
drew  near.  In  the  murmur  of  the  stream,  he 
caught  his  name  spoken  by  her;  in  the  wind 
passing  through  the  pines,  her  sigh  over  his 
misfortunes.  Opening  his  eyes,  he  expected 
to  find  her  at  his  side,  her  cool  hand  resting 
on  his  head ;  then,  disappointed,  fell  asleep 
again ;  and  lo !  it  was  not  Betty  after  all,  who 
sat  by  and  soothed  him,  but  loving  little  May. 
<c  May  !  May  !  You  won't  forsake  me, 
dear  ?  "  he  pleaded,  in  the  despair  of  tortured 
dreams ;  then  started,  broad  awake,  to  hear 
only  the  voice  of  the  wilderness  at  night.  It 
was  clear,  and  the  stars  shone  through  the  can- 
opy of  leaves.  He  felt  sore,  stiff,  confused, 
but  still  master  of  himself.  Again  he  crawled 
down  to  drink,  and  returned  to  lie  on  his  back, 
staring  upward,  and  wondering  if  this  were  to 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          153 

be  the  end  of  his  bright  hopes  and  strong 
ambition  for  a  soldier's  life.  To  die,  starving, 
in  the  trackless  woods  where  it  might  be  years 
before  a  wayfarer  would  find  his  bones,  if  ever. 
Better  to  have  fallen  in  the  skirmish  yester- 
day, with  the  Indians,  bullets  singing  around 
his  ears  ! 

Then  his  thoughts  played  with  the  effect  of 
his  loss  upon  individuals.  His  mother,  stern, 
cold,  unselfish  in  her  devotion,  might  mourn, 
but  no  one  would  see  her  tears.  His  uncles 
were  too  much  like  her  to  give  token  of  any 
grief.  His  cousins,  far  away  at  happy,  shel- 
tered Vue  de  1'Eau,  the  generous  Colonel,  kind 
if  hasty  Cousin  Bess,  the  household,  the  stable- 
men, all  would  remember  him  in  sorrow,  and 
speak  gently  of  his  presence  in  their  home. 
His  General  would  say  he  had  done  well. 
That  was  something,  that  was  much ;  Rolfe 
could  even  die  for  that,  he  thought,  turning 
laboriously  on  his  bed,  with  an  impulse  of  sol- 
dier's pride  swelling  in  his  stout  young  heart. 
But  Betty  —  that  pricked  him  sorely  !  Betty  ! 
Flower  would  get  her,  Rolfe  had  not  a  doubt. 
Flower  was  worthy  of  her  —  a  gentleman  —  a 
soldier  —  with  a  place  in  the  world  fit  to  offer 
the  peerless  Rose  of  the  Potomac,  as  he  had 
heard  her  called.  Ah!  well.  It  was  little  to 
Rolfe  now.  Provided  Flower  made  Betty 
happy,  it  was  little  to  a  man  so  near  to  the 
last  gasp. 


154          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Again  his  fancy  took  up  little  May.  True- 
hearted,  merry,  imperious,  tender  little  May. 
What  a  wife  she  would  make  for  somebody, 
one  day !  What  a  comrade  to  fight  life's  battles 
with.  Rolfe  hoped  his  mother  would  remem- 
ber to  send  to  May  the  parcel  of  choice  skins 
he  had  cured  and  had  set  aside  for  her  on  a 
cupboard  shelf  in  the  Lodge,  the  third  shelf  in 
the  left-hand  cupboard.  Then  Rolfe  fell  asleep 
again  to  dream  of  Logan's  majestic  figure, 
standing  facing  him  upon  the  cliff. 

It  was  full  day  when  he  awakened  next. 
The  sun  shone  brilliantly.  He  was  not  dead, 
nor  like  to  be,  could  he  only  get  food  and 
drink.  Shaking  the  vapours  of  fevered  sleep 
out  of  his  brain,  he  sat  up  to  look  around  him. 
Far  and  near,  leaves  and  branches,  boles  and 
undergrowth,  a  mist  of  green  overspreading 
them.  The  river,  with  its  incessant  chatter, 
teased  him,  but  he  managed  to  crawl  again  to 
it,  and  drank  and  bathed  his  head.  Then 
espying  a  bush  of  young  sassafras,  he  cut  it  off 
at  the  root,  and  after  chewing  the  glutinous, 
pleasant-tasting  leaves,  applied  them  Indian 
fashion,  as  a  poultice  to  his  wound.  The  relief 
was  great;  and,  while  enjoying  it,  Rolfe  me- 
chanically shaped  with  his  hunting-knife,  out 
of  the  remainder  of  the  bush,  a  forked  stick, 
with  sharp  points,  at  which  achievement  he 
smiled  with  feeble  satisfaction,  as  a  token  that 
he  was  in  ordinary  strength.  While  watching 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          155 

a  tribe  of  great  ants  travelling  in  and  out  of 
a  heap  of  earth,  and  trying  to  forget  the  pangs 
of  hunger  that  assailed  his  stomach,  he  turned, 
in  answer  to  a  faint  rustling  sound  over  the 
dead  leaves,  and  beheld  gliding  near  him  an 
enormous  rattle-snake,  unconscious  of  his 
presence. 

Rolfe,  a  master  of  woodcraft,  struck  true  with 
the  crotch  in  his  hand,  pinning  the  creature  to 
the  ground  close  to  its  beautiful  deadly  head. 
To  despatch  it  after  that  was  a  small  matter,  and 
was  done  smiling  again.  It  was  not  a  thing 
unknown  to  him  to  eat  roast  rattlesnake  in 
camp,  and  from  the  waist  up,  he  had  still  a  fair 
possession  of  his  powers.  With  flint  and  steel 
he  kindled  a  fire,  cooked  a  section  of  his  vic- 
tim, and  consumed  it  with  relish.  Twice  that 
day,  this  operation  was  accomplished,  then  his 
gorge  rose  in  rebellion  against  repeated  rattle- 
snake. He  fell  asleep,  saying  to  himself  pet- 
tishly that  he  would  rather  starve  than  touch 
another  morsel  of  the  accursed  reptile's  flesh. 

Lying  awake  next  morning,  striving  to 
make  up  his  mind  to  return  to  the  loathed 
diet,  he  espied,  swooping  from  ether,  a  great 
bird  that  circled  and  swooped  again  —  an  eagle 
in  search  of  prey. 

"  He  may  get  me,  but  not  yet/'  said  Rolfe, 
preparing  for  the  conflict. 

The  huge  object,  plunging  again  downward, 
came  on  this  time  like  a  cloud  driven  by  wind, 


156          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

straight  to  the  spot  where  the  wounded  ranger 
lay.  Rolfe  was  ready  with  his  knife,  to  meet 
the  first  element  of  comedy  in  his  dire  predica- 
ment. The  famished  eagle  taking  no  notice  of 
him,  picked  up  the  remainder  of  the  snake  and 
flew  away.  At  which  climax  the  young  man, 
though  a  trifle  ruefully,  laughed  aloud. 

All  day  he  lamented  his  lost  provision,  and 
so  the  long  hours  wore  away,  and  again  fell  one 
of  those  lovely  ethereal  nights,  in  which  all  the 
world  rejoices  save  those  obliged  to  lie  abroad 
in  them. 

By  the  following  morning,  fever  had  set  in  in 
earnest ;  and,  finding  that  he  had  not  strength 
to  drag  his  body  to  the  water's  edge,  Rolfe 
resigned  himself  to  die. 

A  few  rods  above  what  he  took  to  be  his 
final  resting-place,  the  capricious  mountain 
river  widened  into  a  still  and  shallow  pool, 
where  a  tired  horse  might  stand  breast-deep 
and  drink  his  fill  in  comfort.  Into  this  crystal 
reservoir  now  stepped  cautiously,  from  the 
more  travelled  bank  of  the  stream,  a  sturdy 
black  pony,  whose  rider,  gathered  into  a  gro- 
tesque bunch  upon  the  saddle,  was  of  doubtful 
sex  and  nondescript  variety.  The  man's  seat 
on  the  horse,  the  nether  garments  of  worn 
buckskin,  the  faded  uniform  coat,  the  mascu- 
line head-piece,  the  rifle  and  tomahawk,  and 
butcher's  knife  in  the  belt,  no  less  than  the 
tanned  face  and  large  muscular  hands,  would 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          157 

indicate  one  of  creation's  lords ;  but  the  rough 
hair  worn  in  a  knot  behind,  and  a  short  petti- 
coat like  a  kilt,  of  homespun  linsey,  contra- 
dicted the  first  impression. 

This  was  a  character  of  wide  repute  among 
the  Virginians  of  the  Valley  in  that  day ;  a 
martial  and  alarming  apparition  to  those  who 
beheld  her  for  the  first  time,  — "  Mad  Ann," 
the  pony-messenger  between  the  settlements, — 
who  could  be  relied  upon  to  do  errands  through 
the  wildest  tracts  of  woodland,  and  was  on 
terms  equally  good  with  the  Indians  and  the 
whites.  It  was  believed  —  although  nobody 
knew  for  certain  —  that  her  birthplace  had 
been  Liverpool  in  England,  chiefly  because  she 
always  bestowed  that  name  upon  her  pony. 
Those  who  affected  to  be  best  informed  con- 
cerning Ann  Bailey  averred  that  she  had  been 
the  wife  of  a  soldier  in  one  of  Braddock's  regi- 
ments, and  that,  upon  his  death  in  the  battle 
where  his  General  was  killed,  she  had  gone  out 
into  the  woods  stark  mad,  reappearing  after  a 
long  interval  of  time  —  supposed  to  have  been 
spent  among  friendly  Indians  —  and  taking  up 
her  present  avocation.  Where  she  lived,  no 
one  was  bold  enough  to  say,  since  she  repelled 
curiosity  as  ardently  as,  on  occasion,  she  could 
follow  the  chase  or  drink  whiskey  with  the 
men.  But  that  she  was  honest  and,  in  her 
own  erratic  way,  dependable,  the  authorities  of 
the  county  had  reason  to  know,  as  well  as  the 


158          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

farmers  between  whom  she  acted  as  interme- 
diary and  quasi-peddler.  Mad  Ann  was  now 
about  forty-five  years  old,  —  short,  stout,  and 
of  iron  constitution  and  strength.  A  moun- 
taineer who  offended  her  was  once  boxed  from 
his  horse  into  the  road,  and  it  was  whispered 
that  her  late  husband,  before  leaving  England, 
had  been  a  professor  in  what  was  politely  styled 
"  the  fancy  "  art  of  pugilism. 

Across  her  saddle-bow  hung  a  young  deer, 
a  wild  turkey,  and  a  pair  of  partridges.  As 
she  sat  puffing  a  corn-cob  pipe,  the  fumes  of 
the  tobacco,  drifting  to  Rolfe's  nostrils,  stirred 
him  to  notice  when  he  had  ceased  to  take 
heed  of  sound.  The  movement,  slight  as  it 
was,  caught  her  keen  ear,  and,  through  a  tuft 
of  intervening  bracken  on  the  bank,  she  was 
about  to  fire  at  him ;  but  second  thoughts 
prompted  her  rather  to  urge  forward  a  step 
or  two  the  obstinate  Liverpool,  who,  serene  in 
his  aqueous  encompassment,  declined  at  first 
to  budge.  Rolfe  groaned,  and,  at  sight  of 
him  lying  there  alone,  Ann  eased  herself  of 
that  rarity  upon  her  lips — a  pious  exclamation. 

"The  Lord  deliver  us!  'Tis  young  Master 
Poythress  that  I  thought  burned  at  the  stake 
by  Logan's  braves." 

Drawing  Liverpool  into  the  bank  nearer 
Rolfe,  she  dismounted  with  agility,  and  was 
soon  supporting  the  young  man  in  her  stout 
arms,  giving  him  water  with  whiskey  from  her 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


IS9 


canteen,  and,  following  that,  a  supply  of  milk 
from  a  goat's-hair  pouch  hanging  amid  the 
well-filled  larder  at  her  saddle-bow.  After 
Rolfe  had  made  out  to  give  her  the  barest 
outline  of  his  escape,  he  was  dropping  off 
again  in  a  fevered  doze,  when  Ann,  to  arouse 
him,  cried :  — 

"  You  don't  want  to  ask  me  nothing  about 
the  gal  Baker,  then,  nor  your  men  that  got 
away  ? " 

"  Peggy  Baker !  She  is  safe  ?  Thank 
God ! "  exclaimed  Rolfe,  starting  into  con- 
sciousness. 

"  If  you'll  help  yourself  to  help  me  to  get 
you,  instead  o'  the  deer,  afore  me  on  that  tar- 
nation Liverpool,  I'll  tell  you  the  good  news," 
said  the  woman ;  and,  thus  urged,  Rolfe  made 
an  effort  causing  him  to  feel  as  if  stretched 
upon  a  rack  ;  an  effort,  that  successful  though 
it  was,  sent  him  straight  into  Death's  ante- 
chamber —  a  deep  swoon. 

While  incidents  like  these  were  daily  occur- 
ring along  the  line  of  the  frontier,  to  usher  in 
the  greater  events  of  the  Indian  campaign  to 
follow,  my  Lord  Dunmore  at  Williamsburg 
was  preparing  to  take  the  field  against  the  con- 
federated chiefs  of  the  savages  beyond  the 
Ohio.  Under  the  spur  of  his  Council,  the 
Governor  had  been  "  prevailed  upon  to  try 
another  Assembly " ;  but  the  "  inflammable 


160          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

patriots "  had  not  failed  to  meet  in  conven- 
tion, as  proposed,  and  to  appoint  delegates 
for  a  Congress  in  Philadelphia  in  September. 
These  and  the  Indian  troubles  had  so  wrought 
up  the  angry  ruler,  that  he  took  no  pains  to 
conceal  his  wrath.  The  Colony  everywhere 
was  in  a  turmoil  of  revolt ;  in  the  lowlands 
against  the  British  Ministry ;  in  the  highlands 
against  the  incursions  of  the  red  Terror  along 
their  borders.  Cavillers  in  plenty  there  were, 
to  say  that  my  Lord  meant,  not  help,  but 
mischief  to  Virginians,  by  his  expedition  north- 
ward ;  that  he  had  conceived  the  devilish  idea 
of  avenging  his  annoyances  at  their  hands,  by 
secretly  fomenting  the  war  spirit  of  the  braves, 
already  aroused  by  his  emissaries ;  and  that  by 
this  method  he  hoped  to  divert  the  growth  of 
rebellion  against  the  mother-country.  But 
these  are  questions  for  grave  historians  to 
decide. 

Among  the  men  to  whom  the  summons  to 
military  action  came  as  something  of  a  relief, 
was  Captain  Geoffry  Flower.  Time  had  not 
healed  the  smart  of  Cupid's  arrow  in  his 
breast,  nor  had  it  greatly  advanced  his  hopes 
of  winning  his  beloved.  He  had  said  adieu 
to  Miss  Betty  when  that  young  lady  had 
started  on  the  return  with  her  mamma  and 
sister  from  Williamsburg  to  Vue  de  1'Eau, 
leaving  Colonel  Poythress  on  duty  in  the 
Council.  There  had  been  no  visible  excuse 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          161 

for  forsaking  his  staff  duty  and  riding  back 
with  the  ladies,  as  he  had  come.  Even  Colonel 
Poythress,  who,  clapping  him  on  the  shoulder, 
had  said  his  room  would  be  always  ready,  the 
gate  on  the  latch  for  him,  at  Vue  de  1'Eau,  had 
not  seemed  to  expect  an  immediate  repetition 
of  Geoffry's  visit ! 

Unfortunately,  except  in  the  case  of  an  ac- 
cepted suitor,  when  sweet  pain  is  stilled  by 
certainty,  opportunity  to  bask  in  the  fair  one's 
presence  does  not  always  come  at  a  young 
man's  call.  And  Geoffry  did  not  yet  feel 
that  he  dared  step  forward  boldly  as  a  suitor. 
Betty  had  passed  into  the  stage  of  blowing  hot 
and  cold  upon  his  passion ;  and  whether  this 
meant  coquetry,  or  a  tender  desire  to  save  him 
pain,  or  both,  or  neither,  he  was  too  thor- 
oughly wrought  up  by  her,  to  tell.  One  thing 
had  been  evident :  that  Betty's  mamma,  after 
wavering  for  a  while  for  and  against  encourag- 
ing him,  had,  before  they  parted,  showed 
Geoffry  frankly  that  she  would  welcome  him 
again  only  as  an  agreeable,  rather  detrimental 
relative;  the  kind  of  young  man  one  is  glad 
to  see  at  dinner,  or  anywhere  —  except  on 
those  occasions  in  a  daughter's  life  when  the 
mother  is  forced  to  feel  that  three  is  trump- 
ery. 

A  dreadful  suspicion  had  shot  through  Cap- 
tain Flower,  that  the  newly  arrived  Earl  of 
Avenel  was  in  some  way  responsible  for  this. 


1 62          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

The  Governor,  laughing  over  an  after-dinner 
talk  with  the  staff,  had  let  fall  a  hint  that 
Avenel  would  try  to  pluck  the  Rose  of  the 
Potomac  from  her  stem ;  and,  although  Geoffry 
could  not  bring  himself  to  believe  that  the 
critical  and  clear-sighted  Betty  would  ever  put 
up  with  a  homely  elderly  widower,  the  sugges- 
tion had  not  left  him  over  pleased. 

Then  came  the  call  to  arms ;  in  imagina- 
tion he  saw  the  march,  the  gathering  of  troops, 
red-coats  bursting  out  like  poppies  over  every 
country-side  where  they  passed ;  the  banner  of 
St.  George  courting  summer  breezes ;  drum 
and  fife  inviting  volunteers  to  go  and  rid  help- 
less victims  of  the  scourge  that  ravaged  them. 
Where  is  the  manly  heart  that  does  not  throb 
like  Flower's,  in  answer  to  such  a  summons  ? 
He  —  or  rather  Keys  did  it  for  him — packed 
his  kit ;  and  then  he  sat  down  to  write  to  his 
inamorata  an  honest  letter  —  in  which  he  told 
her  he  was  going  out  to  fight  the  Indians  back 
from  the  soil  of  the  Province  she  had  made 
him  love ;  that,  if  he  returned  safe  and  sound 
from  the  expedition,  he  would  present  himself 
at  Vue  de  1'Eau  to  ask  their  congratulations; 
and  if  he  fell,  she  would  know  that  then,  and 
always,  he  was  hers,  GeofFry  Flower. 

Betty,  when  she  received  this  epistle  at  the 
hands  of  the  tutor,  Nimrod  Snow  (returned 
from  Williamsburg  to  sail  in  a  Poythress  ship 
for  England),  blushed,  looked  scared,  blushed 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          163 

again,  then  ran  away  with  the  missive  to  her 
bedroom.  May,  who  shared  that  apartment 
with  her  sister  (at  night,  still  ensconced,  it 
must  be  told,  in  a  "  trundle  bed,"  pulled  out 
from  beneath  the  carved  four-poster,  with  its 
tent  of  snowy  dimity,  to  which  Miss  Poythress 
mounted,  candlestick  in  hand,  on  a  flight  of 
carpeted  steps),  was  seized  with  a  fit  of  wild 
curiosity.  She  made  the  excuse  of  needing  a 
clean  pinafore,  after  filling  hers  with  cherries 
in  the  orchard,  and  went  and  rattled  at  the 
bolted  door.  But  Betty  only  poked  the  apron 
out,  and  bade  her  run  away  to  Mrs.  Judith's 
room,  and  put  it  on,  and  not  be  a  tiresome 
little  thing.  Then  May  took  cherries  on  a 
cabbage-leaf,  and  coaxed  Betty  through  the 
keyhole  to  come  out  and  eat  the  luscious 
blackhearts.  A  muffled  voice  answered  that 
Betty  did  not.  wish  cherries,  and  did  not  think 
May  could  condescend  to  be  a  horrid  spy. 
Whereat  May  burst  out  crying,  and  Betty  flew 
out  at  the  door  and  hugged  her,  and  May 
saw  she  too  had  been  in  tears.  But  Betty 
said  nothing  of  the  contents  of  her  letter,  and, 
a  little  later,  dressed  herself  in  her  prettiest 
pink  calimanco,  and  sat  at  the  harpsichord 
singing,  for  an  hour  at  least,  to  my  Lord  of 
Avenel. 

Now,  May,  although  she  still  wore  pinafores 
and  slept  in  a  trundle-bed,  and  sometimes 
amused  herself  in  her  old  torn-boy  fashion, 


164          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

had  of  recent  days  developed  much  more 
womanly  feeling  and  intuition ;  her  romps  and 
antics  were  only  those  stirrings  of  the  spirit, 
"  as  though  the  rose  would  shut  and  be  a 
bud  again."  She  had  achieved  a  true  friend- 
ship for  blithe  and  manly  Geoffry  Flower ; 
and,  in  her  heart,  was  busy  at  match-making 
between  him  and  Betty,  most  of  her  waking 
hours.  She  could  not  help  connecting  the 
mysterious  letter  with  Geoffry,  and  longed  to 
talk  of  it  with  some  sympathetic  soul. 

Pursuing  her  way  through  the  dining-room, 
and  the  still-room  where  Mrs.  Judith,  looking 
pale  and  ill,  was  occupied  in  breaking  up  a  loaf 
of  sugar  into  cubes  for  table  use,  she  found  her 
mamma  in  a  flagged  courtyard  shaded  by  a 
large  mulberry  tree,  whose  over-ripe  purple 
fruits  dropped  from  time  to  time  upon  the 
stones,  to  become  the  spoil  of  predatory 
chickens,  wandered  thither  from  their  rightful 
quarter. 

Madam  Poythress,  who,  albeit  lady  chate- 
laine of  a  great  estate,  and  owner  of  many 
negroes,  was  not  exempt  from  household  cares 
of  the  intimate  sort  practised  in  her  time,  wore 
a  sun-bonnet.  Madam  Poythress  sat  upon  a 
three-legged  stool.  Madam  Poythress  presided 
over  a  cauldron  beneath  which  a  charcoal  fire 
was  burning  hot ;  she  was,  in  brief,  engaged 
in  making  raspberry  jam.  When  the  pink, 
sticky  mass  in  her  bell-metal  kettle  sent  up  a 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          165 

rich  bubbling  scum,  she  would  remove  the 
same  with  a  silver  skimmer,  repeating  this  until 
her  confection  was  reduced  to  the  exact  degree 
of  jamminess  desired.  As  the  operation  was 
slow,  the  lady  allowed  herself  the  relaxation  of 
a  book.  May's  coming  surprised  her  in  the 
perusal  of  a  new  novel,  recently  arrived  from 
the  other  side,  which  she  was  reading  "  to  see 
whether  it  would  do  to  give  to  the  girls."  A 
conviction  that  it  would  not  "  do,"  had  been 
forcing  itself  upon  the  mind  of  the  chaperon ; 
a  little  confused,  a  little  vexed,  a  little  red,  she 
arose  hastily,  put  the  book  in  question  upon  the 
stool,  dropped  down  on  it  and,  thus  panoplied 
with  a  sense  of  right-doing,  confronted  her  child. 

"  Isn't  the  jam  almost  made,  mamma  ? "  asked 
May,  suavely. 

"  What,  child,  with  all  those  yet  to  pre- 
serve ? "  answered  Madam  Poythress,  pointing 
to  the  trays  of  berries  just  borne  into  the  court- 
yard upon  the  turbaned  heads  of  two  negro 
lasses.  "  How  often  have  I  bid  you  not  dis- 
turb me,  May,  when  I'm  engaged  about  the 
housekeeping  ? " 

"  But  I  am  lonesome,  mamma  ;  I  want  some- 
body to  talk  to.  With  Hughey  at  school,  papa 
away  at  the  Council,  Rolfe,  dear  knows  where, 
in  the  Indian  country,  and  Betty  —  " 

<c  Well  —  Betty  ?  "  asked  Madam  Poythress, 
a  satisfied  smile  playing  around  the  corners  of 
her  comely  mouth. 


1 66          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  I  have  no  patience  with  her ! "  burst  out 
the  girl,  letting  her  grievance  loose.  "  I  peeped 
into  the  drawing-room  as  I  ran  past,  and 
she  is  there  still  —  singing — singing  —  half  the 
marble-backed  book  of  ditties,  I  should  think 
—  and  he,  the  old  dullard,  nodding  in  an  arm- 
chair beside  the  harpsichord.  If  it  were  me,  I 
should  jump  up,  and  throw  all  the  music-books 
down  with  a  bang  upon  the  floor,  and  see  him 
wake,  and  then  laugh  and  leave  him.  Why 
should  such  an  ancient  hang  around  a  girl  of 
Betty's  age  ?  Why  should  she  put  up  with 
him?  Why  —  " 

"  Matoaca,  you  will  favour  me  by  holding 
your  tongue  about  matters  you  cannot  under- 
stand. If  you  were  older,  wiser,  less  feather- 
headed, —  more  considerate  of  your  parents' 
interests,  —  you  would  understand  your  sister's 
reasons  for  putting  herself  to  the  pains  of  mak- 
ing our  guest  at  home." 

w  But,  mamma  —  it  can't  be  as  a  suitor  he 
is  —  " 

"  Matoaca ! " 

"Indeed,  ma'am,  I  have  done.  But  if  you'd 
only  tell  me  whether  there's  news  from  Captain 
Flower." 

"  I  know  nothing  about  Captain  Flower. 
An  excellent  young  man,  no  doubt,  but  —  mind 
what  I  say,  miss  —  you  are  not  to  prate  to 
Betty  about  GeofFry  Flower." 

The    matron's  slim    stock    of  patience   was 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          167 

exhausted.  She  wanted,  besides,  to  return  to 
"  The  Adventures  of  a  Valet."  The  idea  of 
a  nobleman  masquerading  as  his  own  man ! 
Ridiculous  !  And  low !  But  'twould  do  no 
harm  to  see  how  the  creature  came  out  of  his 
intrigues ;  so  May  was  put  to  flight  unsatisfied ; 
a  new  batch  of  raspberries  went  into  the  caul- 
dron ;  the  sun-bonnet  was  tilted  down  at  an 
angle  convenient  for  perusal  of  the  book  upon 
the  reader's  knee ;  bees  boomed  in  and  out  of 
a  vine  of  morning-glories  upon  the  lattice 
screening  the  yard  from  view ;  Mrs.  Judith, 
in  the  still-room,  dipped  circles  of  white  paper 
into  brandy  to  put  atop  her  jam-pots  before 
pasting  covers  upon  these  finished  works  of 
household  art.  May,  the  disturber,  had  left 
them  to  repose  ! 

A  new  idea  struck  the  girl.  Threading  the 
gravelled  box-walks  of  the  garden,  she  took 
her  way  to  a  brick  building  known  as  "the 
schoolhouse,"  where  Mr.  Snow  had  his  quar- 
ters, and  whither  the  young  people  of  the 
family  had  always  repaired  to  him  for  lessons. 
Through  a  rose-grown  porch,  over  which  fell 
a  cascade  of  weeping-willow,  she  passed  in  to 
a  dim,  green-lighted  apartment  surrounded  by 
shelves  of  books,  where,  amid  boxes  open  for 
packing,  and  piles  of  documents  and  volumes, 
she  found  the  dominie  making  ready  his  few 
possessions  to  leave  the  Colony. 

Matoaca  well   knew  this  place.      Here  had 


1 68          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

she  stood  with  Hughey  to  recite  the  Latin 
grammar  the  two  had  made  so  bitter  a  task  for 
the  patient  master  to  drill  into  their  heads ; 
there,  curled  up  in  a  worn  leather  chair  discarded 
from  the  great  house,  she  had  often  pored  over 
"  Plutarch's  Lives/'  a  work  that  to  Colonial 
Virginians,  like  the  Bible  to  their  Puritan 
brothers  in  New  England,  was  the  book  of 
every  day. 

Mr.  Nimrod  Snow,  in  his  shirt-sleeves,  a 
cobweb  on  his  wig,  and  several  smutches  of 
dust  athwart  his  countenance  and  hands,  begged 
the  young  lady's  permission  to  withdraw  to 
make  himself  presentable. 

"If  you  do,  Master  Snow,  I  shall  run  away 
at  once/'  she  said  decidedly.  "  No,  no.  Let 
me  rather  help  you  to  fill  these  boxes.  This 
pile  of  the  'Court  Calendar,'  and  'The  Young 
Man's  Best  Companion,'  are  they  to  be  placed 
in  the  black  box,  or  the  blue?  And  'Horace' 
—  that  I  can  see  Rolfe  stealing  out  with,  to 
climb  the  great  tulip-poplar,  where  he  might 
read  it  undisturbed  ?  " 

"I  was  in  the  act  of  putting  aside  a  few  of 
your  cousin's  especial  favourites  among  my 
books,  to  be  left  for  him  as  a  token  of  my 
regard,"  said  the  tutor.  '"  Bolingbroke's  Let- 
ters,' 'Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  Works,'  Dean 
Swift's  productions,  and  those  sweet  verses, 
entitled  '  Night  Thoughts,'  by  Mr.  Young. 
Rolfe  has  a  taste  for  poetry,  dear  lad  !  I  would 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          169 

that  it  were  in  my  power  to  contribute  more 
largely  to   his  library.     Perhaps  in  the  future 

—  but  who   knows  what  is  to  follow  this  in- 
fatuation   of    the    so-called    statesmen    of   the 
Province  ?      It  may  be  that  I  shall  never  again 
set  foot  on  American  shores  ;  it  may  be  that  I 
shall  never  again  claim  the  hospitalities  of  my 
benefactors,  your  gracious  papa  and  mamma  — 
excuse  me,  Miss   Matoaca,  I  am  feeling  very 
little  like  myself." 

"Dear  Mr.  Snow,  of  course  you  will  come 
back  here,  and  you  will  have  a  pulpit  some- 
where in  the  Colony,  and  we'll  go  to  hear  you 
preach.  There'll  be  seventhlies,  and  eighthlies, 
and  dust  flying  in  a  cloud,  when  you're  behind 
the  cushion." 

"  And  one,  at  least,  of  my  listeners  will  go 
fast  asleep  in  the  sermon,"  added  the  dominie. 

"  Could  I  read  sermons  for  myself,  I'd  like 
them  better,"  exclaimed  lawless  May.  "  But  if 
I  dozed,  'twould  be  following  the  fashion  of 
an  aristocratic  leader.  The  Earl  napped  at 
Pohick,  last  Sunday ;  and,  by  the  same  token, 
he's  napping  now,  and  Betty  warbling  to  him 
just  the  same  — c  Political  Register '  —  to  be  left 

—  the  black  box,  then  —  but  Mr.  Snow  —  you 
know  everything.     How  does  an  old  man  act 
who  is  in  love  ?  " 

Alas  for  the  poor  Dominie !  this  query  to 
him  whom  the  blind  God  had  not  spared  — 
who,  well  on  in  years,  wrinkled,  poor,  and  ob- 


170         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

scure,  was  carrying  away  from  Virginia  a  hope- 
less passion  for  the  lovely  young  destroyer  of 
men's  peace,  who  had  never  flattered  him  by 
singing  c  Strephon,  betrayed,  ye  Cruel  Maid 
foreswore/  at  the  harpsichord !  To  May's 
surprise,  —  who  thought  the  master  about  to 
sneeze,  —  his  face  worked,  a  deep  crimson 
burnt  upon  his  withered  cheeks,  he  turned 
aside  his  head. 

"  How  long  he  is  about  it,"  said,  to  herself, 
the  impatient  observer. 

But  the  dominie  did  not  sneeze.  He 
gulped,  there  was  a  queer  sound  in  his  throat, 
he  dusted  Shakespeare's  works  with  a  ban- 
danna handkerchief  before  laying  them  in  the 
blue  box  that  was  to  accompany  him  in  his 
cabin  on  the  voyage.  "  I  hardly  know  if  I 
apprehend  your  meaning,"  he  answered,  having 
at  last  conquered  his  agitation. 

"  I  mean,  then,  since  you  will  have  it  in  plain 
words,  do  you  think  our  fossil  Cousin  Avenel 
dreams  that  Betty  would  marry  him? " 

"  Miss  Poythress  is  born  to  fill  high  station," 
said  the  tutor,  valiantly.  "  I,  who  have  seen 
society  on  both  sides  the  water,  know  that  in 
grace  and  beauty  she  might  walk  out  before 
the  noblest  lady  that  ever  made  her  curtsey 
to  King  George.  She's  rare,  and  fine,  and 
radiant ;  and,  among  the  aristocracy,  at  home, 
where  she  rightly  belongs,  would  shine  a  star. 
Why,  at  the  routs  and  balls  and  suppers  and 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         171 

spas,  they'd  be  raving  over  her  !  The  best 
wits  of  the  day  would  make  epigrams  about  her 
shoe-buckle,  that  none  of  them,  by  George,  are 
fit  to  touch." 

"That  is  true  —  quite  true,"  said  May, 
judicially.  "  Betty  is  not  like  other  girls. 
And  I  suppose  my  Cousin  Avenel  is  no 
stronger  to  resist  her  charms  than  all  the  other 
men,  old  and  young,  that  have  come  here 
courting.  But  he  can't  win.  He  has  every- 
thing against  him." 

"  But  one,"  interrupted  the  tutor,  now  grown 
pale.  "  He  has  Madam  Poythress  on  his 
side." 

Matoaca,  at  first  inclined  to  indignant  denial, 
reviewed  many  things  that  told  her  their  old 
friend  was  right.  Upon  which  conclusion, 
she  felt  ready  to  cry,  but  changed  it  into  a 
nervous  laugh. 

"  I  have  faith  in  Betty,"  she  exclaimed. 
"  She  will  never  give  her  hand  without  her 
heart.  And  besides  —  this  is  what  I  came  to 
talk  to  you  about,  Mr.  Snow.  You  have 
just  come  from  town.  Did  you  see  or  hear 
aught  of  Captain  Flower  ?  " 

"  He  is  but  just  started  on  the  march. 
Dunmore  County,  or  near  it,  is,  I  believe, 
their  first  halting-place,  in  attendance  upon  His 
Excellency." 

"  Geoffry,  too  ?  "  cried  the  girl,  sorrowfully. 
"It  seems  to  me  those  Indian  wretches  get 


172          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

our  best.  To  tell  you  truth,  without  fencing, 
Mr.  Snow,  I  rather  fancied  that  you  had 
brought  Betty  tidings  of  Geoffry  Flower,  and 
that  she  was  more  troubled  by  them  than  she 
chose  to  let  me  know.  There,  now,  is  the 
one  of  Betty's  flames  that  suits  her  really. 
When  they  walk,  or  ride,  or  dance  together, 
one  can  ask  no  sight  more  beautiful.  And  he 
is  honest  and  brave,  as  well  as  assorted  to  her 
in  age.  Oh  !  I  wish  /  could  settle  people's 
love  affairs  for  them,  instead  of  letting  them 
make  such  mistakes.  Pray  God,  Geoffry  comes 
back  safe  from  that  war  we  dread  so ;  and  then, 
perhaps  —  Do  they  say  it  will  be  hard  fight- 
ing, Mr.  Snow  ? " 

"  'Tis  general  opinion  that  the  Governor 
and  General  Lewis,  between  them,  ought  to 
wipe  out  the  savages;  even  though  the  Indians 
are  led  by  such  famous  chiefs  as  Logan,  head 
of  the  Mingoes,  Cornstalk,  sachem  of  the 
Shawnees,  Blue  Jacket,  and  Outacite,  the  man- 
killer,  King  of  the  Cherokees ;  all  astute  men, 
and  formidable  in  combination." 

May,  to  whom  the  room  seemed  suddenly 
to  have  passed  into  deeper  shadow,  shivered. 

"And  Rolfe,"  she  said,  after  a  moment's 
pause.  "  He,  of  course,  will  be  wherever 
General  Lewis  is  —  " 

"And  Lewis  will  be  wherever  the  Indian 
fire  is  deadliest,"  exclaimed  the  tutor,  warming 
to  his  theme.  "He  is  an  invincible  warrior, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          173 

and  the  best  ally  the  Governor  could  have. 
And,  if  my  prophecy  be  worth  anything,  my 
pupil,  Rolfe  Poythress,  will,  if  spared  in  this 
campaign,  come  out  of  it  wearing  a  wreath 
of  laurels  his  elders  might  be  proud  to  claim." 

"  He  is  all  you  say/*  was  the  answer.  Then 
Matoaca  worked  till  the  chests  of  books  were 
rilled,  after  which  she  glided  over  to  the  win- 
dow-seat, whither  she  had  often  been  banished 
to  sit  in  duress  until  her  tasks  were  learned. 
In  at  the  open  sash  leaned  a  Gloire  de  Dijon 
rose-tree,  full  of  branches.  She  buried  her 
face  in  one  of  these,  and  said  nothing,  until 
Mr.  Snow,  accustomed  to  her  vagaries,  had 
gone  out  to  his  bedroom,  and  returned  in  the 
proper  guise  of  his  familiar  self,  clad  in  snuff- 
Drown  with  a  neatly  brushed  toupet. 

"  Mr.  Snow,"  said  May,  after  showering  the 
floor  with  petals  from  her  rose,  "  I  asked  you 
a  question  a  little  while  ago,  that  you  did  not 
answer.  I  will  now  ask  it  of  you  differently. 
Is  it  known  — is  it  written  in  the  books  — 
how  one  may  tell  when  he  —  she  —  they  — 
first  believe  —  themselves  —  to  be  in  love." 

"  God  bless  my  soul,  no  ! "  said  the  tutor, 
in  all  simplicity. 


VIII 

IT  was  in  the  full  flush  of  glorious  sum- 
mer, that  a  detachment  of  militia  drafted 
from  neighbouring  counties  marched,  un- 
der command  of  the  Royal  Governor  in  per- 
son, through  the  tramontane  region  of  Virginia, 
whose  charm  from  earliest  days  has  been  sung 
by  travellers,  as  loving  shepherds  pipe  of 
Arcady. 

The  road  lay  through  towering  forests,  be- 
side sylvan  dells,  across  broad  streams,  and 
through  prairies  of  grass  so  high  the  cavalry- 
men made  sport  of  tying  the  heads  of  it 
together  across  their  saddles. 

To  the  satisfaction  of  his  diminutive  army, 
Lord  Dunmore  had  decided  to  halt  by  the 
way  while  awaiting  new  drafts,  volunteers, 
and  reinforcements  generally. 

The  plan  of  this  campaign,  mapped  out  in 
Williamsburg  for  the  Governor  by  General 
Andrew  Lewis,  was,  like  its  deviser,  simple 
and  daring.  Lewis,  with  men  gathered  from 
below  the  Blue  Mountains,  was  to  push  his 
way  straight  through  the  wilderness  to  the  junc- 
tion of  the  Ohio  and  Kanawha  rivers,  —  the 

174 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          175 

objective  point  of  the  Indians  now  known  to 
be  assembling.  Lord  Dunmore,  with  a  force 
in  number  equalling  Lewis',  was  to  march 
directly  to  Fort  Pitt ;  thence  proceeding  on 
the  northern  side  of  the  Ohio,  and  striking  at 
the  savages  from  the  eastward,  to  cooperate 
with  Lewis  in  his  strategy.  But  while  Lewis, 
the  idol  of  the  borderers,  had  been  daily  rally- 
ing under  his  banner  the  best  righting  material 
of  his  region,  Lord  Dunmore,  disliked  and  sus- 
pected, had  experienced  great  difficulty  in  mak- 
ing up  from  the  upper  counties  his  desired 
quota  of  recruits. 

The  spot  pitched  upon  by  him  in  which  to 
assemble  reinforcements  was  in  Frederick,  near 
the  home  of  an  acquaintance,  where  His  Ex- 
cellency, secure  not  only  of  good  cheer  at 
table,  might  also  depend  upon  important  coun- 
sel from  a  veteran  in  Indian  warfare. 

Geoffry  Flower,  who  bore  a  letter  commend- 
ing him  to  the  owner  from  that  nobleman's 
brother  in  England,  was  familiar,  by  report, 
with  Greenway  Court.  The  story  of  how  the 
sixth  Lord  Fairfax,  Baron  of  Cameron  in  the 
Scottish  peerage,  had,  years  before,  forsaken, 
for  it,  his  ancient  castle  of  Leeds  in  Kent,  his 
Jacobean  manor-house  in  the  Isle  of  Wight, 
and  the  privileges  of  life  among  the  beaux 
esprits  of  London,  was  among  the  tid-bits  of 
gossip  served  to  every  newcomer  at  the  Provin- 
cial capital. 


176         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

The  cause  alleged  for  this  romantic  exile  — 
the  failure  of  his  bride-betrothed  to  fulfil  her 
pledge  to  him  when  the  marriage-day  was  set, 
and  her  subsequent  espousal  of  a  duke  —  did 
not  lessen  the  sympathy  of  Captain  Flower  in 
the  case. 

It  was,  therefore,  with  keen  interest  that  he 
looked  about  him  when,  at  sunset,  the  Gov- 
ernor and  his  staff  drew  rein  before  the  door 
of  a  long,  low  dwelling  built  of  native  lime- 
stone, its  triple-planked  oaken  doors  and  shut- 
ters and  the  belfries  over  the  roof  suggesting 
readiness  for  an  attack  by  Indians.  In  the 
enclosure  surrounding  it  were  several  two- 
story  cabins  of  the  same  solid  construction, 
serving  for  the  uses  of  the  household ;  and, 
in  the  deep  woods  adjacent,  quarters  for  a 
hundred  and  fifty  white  servants  and  negro 
slaves,  stables,  workshops,  barns,  and  kennels. 

The  surroundings  of  the  house,  upon  a  spur 
of  the  Blue  Ridge,  hemmed  in  on  every  side 
by  bold  wooded  mountains,  and  dominated  by 
the  stately  shaft  of  Massanutton's  peak,  were 
beautiful  exceedingly ;  the  atmosphere  was  dia- 
mond-clear and  bracing.  The  situation  was 
embodied  solitude;  and  Flower's  sense  of  the 
picturesque  was  further  excited  by  the  know- 
ledge that  the  man  who  deliberately  chose  this 
locality  for  a  residence  and  this  feudal  sim- 
plicity of  living,  was  the  lord  proprietor  of  the 
principality  of  land  known  as  the  "  Northern 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          177 

Neck,"  lying  between  the  Rappahannock  and 
the  Potomac  rivers,  extending  throughout 
their  entire  length  and  containing  nearly  six 
millions  of  acres  —  that,  as  the  country-people 
said,  he  could  "  give  a  hat  full  of  guineas  to 
a  beggar,  without  missing  them." 

The  newcomers  were  at  once  the  centre  of 
a  group  of  negroes,  with  Indians,  half-breeds, 
and  other  backwoodsmen,  retainers  and  hang- 
ers-on of  the  proprietor,  and  enjoying  life 
at  his  expense ;  and  presently,  the  master  of 
Greenway  himself,  a  stately  and  benign  old 
man  in  a  conventional  suit  of  black  velvet, 
came  out,  bareheaded,  to  stand  by  the  stirrup 
of  the  Governor,  and  to  greet  in  his  person  a 
far-av/ay  Majesty.  For,  though  Lord  Fairfax 
had  for  many  years  been  a  faithful  son  of  his 
adopted  Virginia,  —  had  served  the  people  in 
many  capacities  and  was  still  an  active  magis- 
trate of  the  Colony,  and  intended  to  spend  the 
remainder  of  his  life  there,  —  in  his  heart  was 
written,  like  "  Calais"  in  Queen  Mary's,  "Eng- 
land and  the  King."  His  personal  motto  — 
inscribed  on  his  coffin-plate  in  old  Winchester 
church  —  was  "  Je  le  feray  durant  ma  vie"; 
and  the  poignant  sorrow  of  that  life  was  to  be 
the  separation  of  the  Colonies  and  Crown. 

Many  a  year  had  passed  since  the  aged 
dweller  in  this  forest  lodge  —  which  he  had 
built  for  a  steward's  house,  intending  one  day 
to  erect  upon  the  slope  facing  Massanatton, 


178         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

a  Denton  Hall,  like  the  home  of  his  youth  in 
Yorkshire  —  had  crossed  the  sea.  The  memo- 
ries of  his  life  in  Queen  Anne's  court  were 
fading  into  grey ;  he  could  no  longer  hunt ; 
books  palled  a  little;  even  land-grants  and 
county  matters  were  of  less  absorbing  interest. 
What  he  liked  best  to  talk  about,  was  where 
they  had  run  the  fox  to  earth;  what  crops 
were  made  from  such  a  field ;  the  yield  of  a 
favourite  peach-tree ;  and  the  looks  of  the  new 
hound  puppies.  He  was  always  glad  of  vis- 
itors from  below,  and  had  been  accustomed  to 
ask,  first,  about  his  friend  George  Washington, 
who  as  a  youth  had  spent  weeks  at  a  time  at 
Greenway  Court,  and  had  learned  surveying  by 
chart  in  the  stone  "office"  in  the  yard. 

But  nowadays — when  Washington  wrote  to 
him  but  seldom,  and  there  were  strange  stones 
afloat  of  his  utterances  against  established 
things  —  the  old  lord  preferred  not  to  hear 
what  travellers  to  Greenway  had  to  say  upon 
this  subject.  The  information  brought  to  him 
by  a  courier,  of  Lord  Dunmore's  anticipated 
stop,  had  been  to  the  veteran  like  the  flick  of 
a  whip  to  a  mettled  charger.  He  had  deter- 
mined upon  the  use  of  his  house  as  head- 
quarters for  the  Governor  and  staff,  and  had 
set  his  negroes  to  digging  a  well  in  the  grove 
where  the  soldiers  would  encamp.  His  house- 
keeper had  orders  to  provision  the  Court 
abundantly ;  the  stables  were  overhauled,  the 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          179 

best  wines  brought  from  the  cellars;  no  such 
air  of  festa  had  hung  over  Greenway  in  the 
memory  of  his  servants ;  and  it  was  long  since 
any  one  of  them  had  seen  such  a  spring  in  the 
weary  old  baron's  step. 

It  was  a  man  past  eighty,  from  whom  the 
officers,  in  dismounting,  received  each  a  cour- 
teous welcome,  following  him  indoors  as  he 
led  the  way  with  the  Governor.  Although 
his  hawk-eye  was  dim,  his  muscular  frame  no 
longer  finely  erect,  as  in  his  prime,  their  host 
did  the  honours  of  his  house  with  grace.  He 
insisted  upon  attending  Lord  Dunmore  to  his 
chamber,  remained  there  awhile  in  consulta- 
tion with  the  Governor,  and  on  coming  out 
was  noticed* to  wear  a  grave  and  careworn  air. 
Flower,  who  had  held  back  from  too  soon  in- 
truding his  personal  claims  upon  Lord  Fair- 
fax, was  now  singled  out  for  notice  among  the 
group  of  officers  who  stood  outside  the  portal 
before  assembling  for  the  evening  meal  within. 

"You  are  known  to  me  by  repute,  sir," 
said  Lord  Fairfax,  cordially,  "  and  my  brother 
Robert's  introduction  had  not  been  needed. 
I  think  I  can  offer  you  a  surprise  in  an  ac- 
quaintance of  yours  who  arrived  here  from 
the  Potomac,  day  before  yesterday." 

"Colonel  Poythress?"  asked  Geoffry, eagerly. 

"  His  next  of  kin,"  smiled  my  Lord,  leading 
the  way  with  Lord  Dunmore  into  the  dining- 
room. 


180         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Geoffry  could  not  believe  his  eyes.  There, 
sidling  to  meet  him,  came  his  late  guardian, 
Avenel.  It  could  not  be  imagination  that  his 
unpleasant  relative,  after  giving  him  a  limp 
handshake,  seemed  unwilling  to  look  Flower 
full  in  the  face ;  or  that,  after  saying  he  had 
come  off  in  pursuance  of  his  original  inten- 
tion to  visit  the  upper  counties  of  Virginia  at 
that  favourable  season  of  the  year,  the  Earl 
withdrew,  and,  by  maintaining  close  conversa- 
tion with  Flower's  superiors  in  rank,  kept  at 
a  distance  all  overture  from  the  young  man 
concerning  his  further  movements  or  inten- 
tions. Two  or  three  times  during  the  supper 
—  for  which  my  Lord  Fairfax's  housekeeper 
had  proudly  set  forth  her  best  silver  dishes, 
the  services  of  Canton  porcelain  (blue  birds 
perched  upon  blue  branches,  an  old-time  pres- 
ent from  Mount  Vernon  to  Greenway  Court), 
and  the  precious  Queen  Anne  damask  she 
would  have  scorned  to  spread  for  their  fre- 
quent "  buckskin  "  guests  —  Geoffry  caught 
Avenel's  shifty  eyes  wandering  toward  him, 
then  hastily  withdrawing.  Was  it  fancy  that 
he  detected  in  them  an  expression  of  ill-repressed 
triumph  ?  To  the  confusion  of  his  thoughts  was 
added  a  sense  of  baffled  rage,  hardly  reverential 
when  directed  toward  an  uncle. 

It  was  a  striking  scene — the  group  of  red- 
coats surrounding  a  table  lighted  by  wax  tapers 
in  branching  candelabra,  spread  with  the  taste- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          181 

ful  appliances  of  wealth,  in  the  boarded  and 
raftered  room  of  a  house  hung  throughout 
with  arms,  and  decorated  with  heads  and  horns 
and  pelts  of  big  game  from  the  wilderness  that 
came  close  to  its  doors ! 

Beside  the  ivory-tinted  countenance  of  the 
venerable  host,  the  ruddy  visage  of  the  Gov- 
ernor was  just  beginning  to  expand  with  gen- 
iality under  the  influence  of  Greenway  Court 
madeira.  On  the  other  side  of  Lord  Fairfax 
sat  the  little  Earl  of  Avenel,  richly  attired  in 
a  court  suit  of  prune-coloured  velvet,  with  lace 
ruffles  hanging  like  dog's  ears  around  his 
thin  hands;  behind  whose  back  was  posted 
his  sleek  valet,  M.  Fleury,  a  functionary  from 
whom  his  Lordship  was  rarely  seen  apart. 
Somebody,  rash  enough  to  venture  upon 
ground  forbidden  to  the  ordinary  guests  at 
Lord  Fairfax's  table,  started  discussion  con- 
cerning the  new  Committee  of  Safety  in  Fair- 
fax County,  before  which  Colonel  Washington 
had  come  out  with  burning  sympathy  for  the 
plight  of  Boston  ;  and  no  sooner  had  that 
question  been  hurried  out  of  the  way,  than 
another  person  took  from  his  waistcoat  pocket, 
and  craved  permission  to  read  before  the  com- 
pany, the  following  item  from  a  current  Vir- 
ginian newspaper :  — 

"  A  Card.  A  Virginian  presents  his  compli- 
ments to  the  Jockey  Clubs  of  Fredericksburg 


1 82          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

and  Portsmouth,  and  begs  that  they  will  sup- 
press their  sporting  spirit,  till  the  circum- 
stances of  America  can  permit  it  with  more 
decency.  He  also  begs  leave  to  recommend 
to  the  most  serious  consideration  of  these 
clubs,  whether  their  purses  applied  to  the  re- 
lief of  the  distressed  Bostonians  would  not 
afford  them  more  real  pleasure  than  all  that 
can  arise  from  viewing  a  painful  contest  be- 
tween two  or  three  animals." 

"Hearken  to  that,  will  you?"  commented 
Lord  Avenel,  noisily.  "  A  fine  pass  you  have 
come  to,  my  Lord  Governor,  in  this  Colony 
of  yours  !  'Tis  like  a  parcel  of  pert  children 
lecturing  their  mother.  Faith,  if  I  were  in 
your  uniform,  I'd  make  short  work  of  the 
saucy  urchins  by  shutting  them  up  in  a  dark 
cupboard,  on  bread  and  water,  till  they  come 
to  their  senses  and  roar  for  mercy." 

"You  will  pardon  me,  gentlemen,  if  I  crave 
a  more  pleasant  topic  for  our  hour  of  relaxa- 
tion," said  the  host,  whose  face  was  overspread 
with  a  look  of  pain  ;  a  warning  made  evidently 
needful  by  the  rising  choler  of  the  Governor 
and  the  chafing  temper  of  the  rest  of  the 
company. 

"  'Tis  your  affair,  my  Lord  Governor,  not 
mine,"  went  on  Avenel,  unheeding  this  mild 
reproof.  "  But  certainly,  were  I  in  your  posi- 
tion, I'd  force  these  insolent  agitators  into 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          183 

keeping  their  mouths  shut,  without  sending 
either  to  New  York  or  to  England  for  the 
wherewithal.  You  have  allies  close  at  hand 
and  zealous  —  I  don't  mean  the  savages. 
They  might  answer  for  a  last  resort.  But  the 
niggers  —  this  slave  population  that  infests 
your  country  like  a  swarm  of  alligators  —  why 
not  arm  —  " 

"  My  Lord  of  Avenel,"  interrupted  Lord 
Fairfax,  haughtily,  "it  is  because,  no  doubt, 
you  are  a  stranger  to  Virginian  ways,  and  an 
observer  of  brief  experience  among  us,  that 
you  venture  to  trench  upon  a  subject  of  all 
others  most  abhorrent  in  our  minds." 

"  Egad,  my  Lord,  the  shiny  black  fellows 
give  me  the  cold  shivers,  too,  when  I  have 
'em  hanging  around  me,"  said  the  Earl,  with 
jocularity. 

Geoffry,  fuming  at  his  end  of  the  table, 
knew,  in  general,  what  to  expect  of  his  uncle 
in  men's  convivial  company.  But  to-night, 
something  seemed  to  inspire  the  little  wretch  to 
be  peculiarly  hard  to  bear ;  a  fact  only  partially 
accounted  for  by  the  regularity  with  which  M. 
Fleury  kept  his  master's  glasses  filled.  Avenel, 
never  actually  intoxicated,  had  a  way  of  drink- 
ing himself  to  the  verge  of  that  condition, 
then  expending  the  full  resources  of  his  powers 
of  offensiveness  upon  every  one  in  reach. 

When  they  began  to  call  healths,  and,  as  in 
duty  bound,  the  host  proposed  that  of  the  Earl 


184          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

of  Avenel,  the  company  showed  little  zeal  in 
responding.  Geoffry  set  his  glass  down  with  a 
gesture  of  dissent  that  snapped  the  stem  in 
twain. 

Of  the  three  heads  of  the  party,  only  Avenel 
appeared  to  notice  this  little  incident.  When 
the  men  on  either  side  of  him  chid  Geoffry  for 
his  churlishness,  he  answered  with  a  wild  laugh : 

"  I  can't  help  it.  'Twould  have  choked  me 
had  I  drank  the  sneak's  health." 

"And  this  of  your  own  kinsman?"  cried  a 
brother  officer. 

"  I  renounce  him,"  said  the  reckless  Geoffry. 
"  And,  if  he  asks  me,  I  shall  tell  him  why." 

Presently  there  was  a  movement  into  the 
next  room,  where  the  card  tables  were  set. 
Geoffry  took  advantage  of  it  to  go  out  upon 
the  porch,  and  in  the  starlight  tramped  up  and 
down  in  a  tumult  of  feeling  he  dared  not  trust 
himself  to  put  into  more  definite  expression. 

"  So  you  have  brought  your  childish  sulks 
where  they  will  not  disgrace  you  further  ? " 
said  a  voice  at  his  elbow. 

Geoffry  mastered  himself  to  answer  his  uncle 
in  an  undertone. 

"  Since  you  have  honoured  me  so  far  as  to 
follow  me,  my  Lord,"  he  said  bitterly,  "  it  is 
evident  that  a  conversation  between  us  may 
serve  as  a  relief  to  both.  But  what  we  —  what 
I,  at  least  —  have  to  say,  had  better  not  be 
overheard." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          185 

"  Do  you  mean  to  threaten  me,  you  cub  ? " 
said  his  lordship,  shrinking  a  little.  "  If  I  were 
you,  Master  Geoffry,  I  should  try  to  have  a 
more  civil  tongue  in  my  head  for  my  elders 
and  betters  ;  especially,  now,  when,  if  what  the 
chatterboxes  tell  me  be  true,  you  might  be  sus- 
pected of  the  ill-temper  of  a  child  when  he  sees 
his  soap-bubble  break  between  his  hands.  No, 
I  did  not  come  here  to  quarrel  with  you. 
What  I  would  convey  to  you  is  what  all  the 
world  will  soon  hear.  I  was  about,  indeed,  to 
make  announcement  of  it  at  table,  —  to  ask 
the  good  wishes  of  our  friends  in  yonder, — 
but  a  natural  modesty,  I  have  never  been  able 
to  conquer,  restrained  me.  Then,  too,  I  rather 
preferred  taking  you,  first,  into  my  confidence. 
You,  of  all  men,  my  pretty  nephew,  will  best 
appreciate  my  good  fortune.  I  have  come  up 
here  on  a  matter  of  business,  preparatory  to 
sailing  homeward.  And  in  view  of  the  threat- 
ening nature  of  the  times,  I  have  deemed  it 
best  not  to  defer  my  happiness  too  long  —  " 

His  taunting,  shuffling  speech  was  more  than 
Geoffry  could  endure,  who  now  let  fly  at  his 
relative  such  a  phrase  as  is  not  commonly  in 
use  between  gentlemen. 

"  Speak  out,  will  you  ? "  the  young  man 
added,  boiling  over  with  rage  and  impatience. 
"  For  I  warn  you,  I  won't  listen  long." 

"  I  was  prepared  for  this/'  said  my  Lord, 
drawing  into  the  safer  vicinity  of  the  open 


1 86         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

window  of  the  room  wherein  the  party  sat  at 
cards.  "  I  must  own  that  it  is  in  deference  to 
the  especial  wishes  of  a  fair  pleader,  that  I  treat 
you  now  with  such  consideration.  If  you  will 
have  it,  abruptly,  I  expect  not  only  to  sail 
early  in  the  next  month,  but,  with  the  sanction 
of  her  parents,  to  take  with  me  a  bride  who 
will  rarely  grace  the  title  and  wealth  I  am  able 
to  offer  her." 

GeorFry  felt  as  if  a  mill-wheel  were  turning 
in  his  brain.  His  impulse  to  give  the  lie  to 
his  kinsman,  to  throttle  him,  to  do  any  one  of 
the  wild  acts  that  suggest  themselves  under  like 
circumstances,  was  crushed  before  it  could  take 
shape,  by  the  overpowering  thought  that  Betty 
had  willed  this  thing  to  be.  Betty  had  placed 
him  in  this  ignominious  attitude  toward  a  rival 
he  thoroughly  despised. 

"If  I  believed  you  — "  he  said,  under  his 
breath. 

"  Believe  what  you  please,"  said  the  Earl, 
who  had  so  far  recovered  himself  as  to  take  a 
pinch  of  snuff.  "  But  perhaps  a  billet  I  was 
charged  to  give,  should  I  meet  him  —  to  a 
former  Corydon  —  one  Captain  Geoffry  Flower 
—  may  settle  the  uncertainty." 

He  took  from  his  pocket,  with  his  lace  hand- 
kerchief, a  tiny  sheet  of  paper,  folded  like  a 
cocked  hat,  and  sealed  with  a  drop  of  wax  — 
pausing  to  brush  from  it  a  grain  of  snuff,  be- 
fore delivering  it  into  Geoffry's  hands. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          187 

The  young  man,  carrying  the  note  to  the 
square  of  light  streaming  through  the  window, 
read  in  a  handwriting  that  he  knew  too  well, 
these  words :  — 

"  You  must  know,  from  me,  that  I  have  said 
I  will  marry  Lord  Avenel  —  and  that  I  am, 
always  and  always,  your  true  friend,  who 
thanks  you  for  a  thousand  kindnesses. 

"E.  POYTHRESS." 

Avenel,  awaiting  Geoffry's  comment,  was 
taken  aback  by  his  utter  silence. 

<c  At  least  you  are  now  convinced,"  he  said 
tauntingly.  "  And  I  may  as  well  add  that, 
after  what  has  occurred  to-night,  if  the  Shaw- 
nees  permit  you  to  return  to  old  England,  we 
—  my  Lady  and  I  —  shall  not  be  able  to  give 
ourselves  the  pleasure  of  receiving  you  at 
Avenel.  Even  if  I  could  find  it  in  my  heart 
to  forgive  your  puppy  love  of  the  girl  I  shall 
make  my  wife,  and  your  puppy  jealousy  of  me, 
I  want  to  forget  all  that  is  connected  with  the 
past,  to  lead  a  new  life  at  Avenel,  to  live,  be 
jolly,  with  my  beauteous  bride.  You  would 
be  an  unpleasant  reminder  of  old  times." 

"  There  will  be  more  than  me  to  remind  you 
of  old  times,"  exclaimed  Geoffry,  now  goaded 
to  speak  what  he  had  long  been  framing  in  his 
mind.  "  There  will  be  ghosts  there,  my  Lord 
of  Avenel.  Ghosts  you  can  never  lay.  Oh! 


1 88          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominiojr 

you  have  said  your  say,  now  it  is  my  turn. 
Since  I  came  out  to  America,  I  have  learned 
that  about  you  that  makes  me  ashamed  to  be 
of  your  family.  Do  not  believe  but  that,  if  I 
thought  you  fit  for  her,  I  could  submit  to  have 
you  taken,  and  me  left.  But  you  are  not  fit. 
You  are  worse  than  a  pretender  to  the  title  and 
estates  you  carry.  You  are  a  thief,  and  I  can 
prove  it  to  the  world." 

At  these  words,  Lord  Avenel,  starting  vio- 
lently, cowered  away  from  the  speaker,  putting 
up  one  hand  as  if  to  ward  away  a  blow.  A 
party  of  officers  issuing  from  the  door  came  up 
to  them,  laughing  and  jesting  over  their  late 
game.  GeofTry,  who  had  no  mind  to  repay  his 
host's  hospitality  by  a  scene,  and  who,  besides, 
felt  the  necessity  of  solitude  to  rally  his  scat- 
tered faculties,  saluted  the  Earl  and  left  him. 


IX 


UNTIL  a  late  hour  Greenway  Court  re- 
sounded with  the  unwonted  sounds  of 
good-fellowship  and  mirth.  Flower,  to 
whom  had  been  allotted  a  "  prophet's  cham- 
ber "  near  that  of  his  chief,  —  the  rest  of  the 
staff  quartered  in  cabins  outside,  the  Earl  of 
Avenel  occupying  another  guest-room  in  the 
house,  —  did  not  pretend  to  go  to  bed.  In 
intolerable  pain  of  mind,  he  paced  the  floor, 
threw  himself,  in  shirt-sleeves,  across  his  couch, 
rose  again,  and  went  to  the  window  to  look  out 
into  the  night.  In  this  attitude,  he  was  sur- 
prised by  a  touch  upon  his  shoulder,  and,  turn- 
ing, beheld  his  uncle,  holding  a  candle  in  his 
hand,  pale,  perturbed,  an  expression  almost 
imploring  in  his  eyes. 

"  Geoff,  my  boy,"  he  said,  with  a  poor  at- 
tempt at  lightness,  "we  had  hard  words,  and  I 
can't  sleep  for  thinking  of  them.  'Twas  fool- 
ish to  take  that  tone  with  me,  lad;  but,  for 
old  time's  sake,  if  I  tried  you  overmuch,  I 
want  to  ask  your  pardon.  Just  now,  you 
won't  be  wishing  to  see  me  or  mine,  and  that's 
only  natural.  But  you'll  come  back  to  Eng- 
land some  day ;  and,  when  you  do,  there'll  be 

189 


190          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

a  neat  little  sum  waiting  for  you  at  your  bank- 
ers, —  a  tidy  sum,  such  as  I'd  have  given  my 
boy  for  an  allowance,  had  he  lived.  And 
you'll  make  Avenel  your  home,  won't  you, 
nephew  ?  Besides  which,  you'll  take  back  the 
idle  insinuations  Heaven  only  knows  what 
prompted  you  to  make.  They're  not  kind, 
Geoff — not  kind  —  " 

"  Not  kind,  perhaps,  but  true,"  said  Flower, 
facing  his  visitor  with  total  disregard  of  the 
hand  outstretched  to  him.  "  What  I  know 
about  your  cursed  kidnapping  of  your  brother's 
heir  came  to  me  lately,  quite  by  accident  and 
much  against  my  will.  Certain  evidences  of  it 
were  even  put  into  my  possession.  For  the 
honour  of  the  family,  and  because  it  seemed 
that  little  less  than  a  miracle  would  ever  bring 
Percy's  son  to  light  again,  I  had  resolved  to 
keep  quiet,  and  might  still  do  so,  if  you  did 
not  intend  to  insult  the  girl  I  love  by  attempt- 
ing to  make  her  the  wife  of  one  who  ought,  by 
right,  to  be  dealt  with  as  a  common  felon. 
Halloo,  there,  don't  faint,  please." 

Lord  Avenel,  falling  into  a  chair,  gasped  for 
breath,  and  seemed  hardly  able  to  keep  his  bal- 
ance. Geoffry,  bestowing  on  him  a  glass  of 
water  from  the  carafe,  shook  him  up  like  a 
bolster,  and  then  retreated,  surveying  his  rela- 
tive with  much  disgust. 

"  What  do  you  propose  to  do  ?  "  asked  the 
Earl,  after  repeatedly  moistening  his  lips. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          191 

"  Nothing,  my  Lord,  so  long  as  you  with- 
draw from  your  suit." 

"  A  manly  vengeance." 

"  I  will  not  stand  on  your  judgment  as  to 
that." 

"  I  care  nothing  for  your  gibes.  You  spoke 
of  proofs.  What  are  they  ?  " 

"  Let  it  suffice  that  they  came  to  me  from 
the  hand  of  Judith  Carnes." 

This  shaft  hit  hard.  The  Earl  turned  deadly 
pale. 

"  That  woman  living  still  ?  " 

"  Living,  and  you  have  lately  been  where 
she  could  have  an  eye  on  you.  Though, 
Heaven  knows,  the  poor  tool  shrinks  from 
you  as  you  must  from  her." 

"You  say  —  you  pretend  —  you  have  those 
proofs  in  your  hands  —  do  you  mean  here  ?  " 

Involuntarily,  Flower  directed  his  glance  to 
a  shagreen  letter-case  lying  beneath  his  pistols 
upon  a  night-stand  beside  the  bed.  Slight  as 
the  movement  was,  it  attracted  my  Lord's  at- 
tention. 

"  Where  I  mean  to  guard  them  till  they  be- 
come indispensable  for  use.  Let  me  assure 
you  that  I  never  knew  their  value  until  now." 

"And  the — the  —  "  but  the  question  would 
not  out  between  his  dry  lips. 

"  The  boy  ?  Set  your  mind  at  rest.  She  be- 
lieves that  he  died  in  infancy.  Had  he  lived, 
trust  me,  I  should  not  have  held  my  peace." 


192          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

For  the  first  time,  a  light  sprang  into 
Avenel's  dull  eye. 

"If — as  I  begin  to  suspect,"  went  on 
Flower,  "  your  errand  in  mousing  around  this 
wild  country  is  really  to  satisfy  yourself  on 
that  score,  I  welcome  in  you  the  symptoms  of 
an  unsuspected  possession  —  a  conscience.  For 
Heaven's  sake,  let  us  be  done  with  this  talk 
that  leaves  a  bad  taste  in  my  mouth.  Again, 
I  tell  you  —  and  you  believe  me  —  that  it  was 
purest  chance  my  finding  out  your  crime.  I 
am  no  detective,  I  have  no  desire  to  see  you 

?ublicly  disgraced.  But,  to  sum  it  up  —  while 
live,  mark  you  —  you  do  not  presume  to 
marry  Betty  Poythress." 

"You  make  no  allowances  for  the  young 
lady's  feelings  in  the  matter  ? "  ventured 
Avenel,  as  a  last  resort. 

"  She  and  hers  will  live  to  thank  me  for 
saving  her  from  you,"  said  the  young  man  — 
despite  himself,  colouring  deeply. 

"  And  you  look  for  your  reward  ?  "  sneered 
Avenel. 

"  I  shall  have  it  when  I  hear  you  have  sailed 
by  yourself —  and  the  sooner  the  better  —  for 
England." 

"  I  should  like  to  kill  you,  here,"  burst  out 
the  Earl,  furiously. 

"  No  doubt.  But  'twould  hardly  repay  the 
hospitality  of  our  gracious  host.  No,  my  Lord 
of  Avenel,  I  will  not  even  fight  with  you." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  193 

The  words  were  simple,  the  emphasis  made 
them  sting.  As  Geoffry,  to  conclude  an  inter- 
view that  bore  heavily  upon  his  self-control, 
now  bowed  formally,  Avenel  made  a  snarling 
rush  at  him,  then,  restraining  himself,  left  the 
chamber. 

Flower  did  not  know  when  sleep  overtook 
him,  so  swelling  were  the  emotions  with  which 
he  tossed  upon  his  couch.  Toward  morning 
—  for  in  the  trees  outside  he  could  hear  the 
peep  of  drowsy  birds  —  he  awoke  to  find  the 
candle  guttered  in  its  socket.  It  seemed  to 
him  that  there  was  a  presence  in  the  room,  but 
the  heavy  slumber  of  weary  youth  overtook 
him  as  he  was  in  the  act  of  turning  to  take  heed 
of  it ;  and  he  knew  no  more,  until  broad  light 
and  Keys,  like  rosy  Phoebus,  at  his  side,  brought 
him  back  to  consciousness. 

"  It's  high  time  to  be  stirring,  Captain.  A 
grand  day,  and  everybody  in  spirits.  My  Lord 
the  Governor  is  but  just  having  breakfast  in  his 
room.  My  Lord  Fairfax  has  been  walking 
over  the  home-farm  since  sunrise,  when  he 
stepped  out  to  see  my  Lord  of  Avenel  set  off 
upon  his  journey." 

"  His  journey  ? "  said  Geoffry,  still  bewildered 
by  somnolence. 

"Yes,  Captain;  but  I  know  not  whither.  A 
good  riddance  —  beg  pardon,  sir,  I  mean  to 
that  smooth-faced  valet,  that  I  believe  to  be  a 
Jesuit  in  disguise  —  a  prowling  Frenchman, 


194          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

that  smells  and  steps  like  a  civet-cat.  They 
had  armed  guides,  and  a  train  of  pack-horses 
to  carry  my  Lord's  velvet  coats  and  the  valet's 
scent  bottles.  There  was  a  word  left  for  you, 
sir.  The  Earl  caught  sight  o'  me  in  the  stable- 
yard,  where  I  was  looking  after  my  horses  — 
and,  by  the  same  token,  he  crossed  my  hand 
with  a  golden  guinea,  to  make  me  remember 


it." 


"And  the  message,"  said  Flower,  impatiently. 

"  My  Lord's  compliments  to  his  dear  nephew, 
and  there  is  no  need  of  further  concern  about 
the  matter  discussed  betwixt  'em  overnight. 
Upon  consideration,  my  Lord  has  decided, 
himself  to  take  charge  of  the  documents  in 
question." 

Geoffry  made  a  bound  out  of  bed.  His 
pistols,  emptied  of  their  contents,  lay  upon  the 
table  where  he  had  left  them;  but  the  letter- 
case  was  gone.  There  was  a  faint  smell  of 
perfume  in  the  air. 

"  'Twas  the  mastiff  matched  against  the  fox," 
he  said  bitterly,  "and  the  fox  has  won.  If  you 
had  picked  the  pockets  of  that  Fleury  chap, 
Keys,  you  might  have  found  there  what  will 
make  or  mar  the  fortunes  of  my  life.  It  was 
like  them  to  do  this  sneaking  deed  in  darkness. 
I've  been  robbed,  Keys,  basely  robbed ;  and, 
what's  more,  I  can't  stir  hand  or  foot  to  help 
myself.  Not  a  word  to  any  one,  mind  ;  if  I'm 
ever  to  get  even  with  those  that  have  wronged 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          195 

me,  'twill  not  be  by  blabbing  my  trouble  to 
the  world." 

Throughout  the  days  following.  Flower  hated 
the  inaction  of  their  summer  holiday.  He 
would  have  been  glad  of  a  summons  to  battle, 
or  any  outward  excitement  to  counteract  his 
inner  wretchedness.  The  daily  drill  of  a  raw 
company  of  volunteers,  and  putting  the  men 
through  their  exercises,  until  he  and  they  were 
equally  worn  out,  was  the  chief  relief  he  found. 
At  last,  however,  came  news  that  for  the  first 
time  caused  him  to  forget  himself.  A  mes- 
senger, arriving  with  despatches  from  General 
Lewis  to  the  Governor,  brought  tidings  of  the 
loss,  some  weeks  before  in  an  Indian  skirmish, 
of  the  General's  favourite  pioneer  scout,  Captain 
Rolfe  Poythress,  who  with  two  of  his  men  had 
come  to  his  death,  fighting  gallantly,  but  over- 
powered by  superior  numbers  of  the  savages. 

Later,  the  same  day,  a  tall,  dark-skinned 
woman  on  horseback,  attended  by  an  elderly 
man  who  resembled  her,  and  a  negro  servant 
carrying  luggage  upon  a  mule,  halted  before 
the  porch  of  Greenway  Court.  The  servants 
of  the  old  lord,  accustomed  to  give  prompt 
accommodation  to  travellers,  were  about  to 
assign  to  the  newcomers  quarters  to  be  aban- 
doned when  it  should  please  them  to  resume 
their  journey.  But  the  lady,  taking  no  denial, 
pleaded  for  an  immediate  audience  with  my 
Lord,  before  whom,  while  sitting  with  the  Gov- 


196          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

ernor  and  his  aides, — among  them  Geoffry 
Flower,  —  she  was  accordingly  introduced. 

"  I  think,  madam,"  said  the  master  of  Green- 
way  Court,  rising  from  his  armchair  to  greet 
his  guest,  "  that  I  have  had  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you  here  once  before.  A  matter  of  a 
land  purchase,  if  I  mistake  not,  —  although 
now  some  years  ago,  —  and  I  hope  the  transac- 
tion has  proved  all  that  you  counted  upon  in  ac- 
quiring the  property.  You  will  pardon  so  old  a 
man,  that  the  name  of  my  visitor  escapes  me  —  " 

"  I  am  the  widow  of  Richard  Poythress,  who 
was  killed  by  the  Indians  in  the  uprising  at 
Wildcat  Hollow,"  said  the  woman,  in  a  clear 
though  monotonous  voice.  At  the  names 
given,  the  attention  of  all  present,  including 
Lord  Dunmore,  was  fixed  upon  her.  "  And, 
consequently,"  she  went  on,  "  a  sister  by  mar- 
riage of  Colonel  Poythress,  who  is  a  member 
of  my  Lord  Dunmore's  Council." 

"And  my  very  good  friend  and  ally,  madam," 
answered  my  Lord  the  Governor.  "  Would 
that  we  had  a  few  more  like  him  to  stay  the 
tide  of  this  rebellious  current  against  authority." 

"  Which  you  are  going  to  find  it  vastly  more 
difficult  to  do  than  you  imagine,"  said  the 
widow,  darting  upon  him  a  glance  of  stern 
significance. 

"  Perhaps,  madam,  perhaps,"  said  Dunmore, 
testily,  turning  on  his  heel,  and  walking  across 
to  the  window. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  197 

"  But  I  did  not  make  a  two-days  journey  to 
talk  of  matters  of  public  import/'  went  on  the 
newcomer,  whose  surprising  command  over 
herself  greatly  impressed  her  audience. 

"  You  are  alone,  madam  ?  You  have  allowed 
them  to  offer  you  refreshment  ? "  interrupted 
the  host,  kindly  solicitous. 

"  I  am  accompanied  by  my  brother,  who  is 
not  of  a  gregarious  turn  of  mind,  and  conse- 
quently will  stay  outside,"  was  the  answer ; 
"  and  I  ask  nothing  of  your  well-known  hos- 
pitality, my  Lord.  As  soon  as  our  horses 
are  fed,  we  shall  return  by  the  way  we  came, 
my  own  servant  being  provided  with  what  is 
needful  for  our  use.  My  mission  is  to  make  a 
statement — a  deposition,  before  you  as  chief 
magistrate  of  the  county,  of  certain  circum- 
stances connected  with  my  late  son,  known 
to  you,  perhaps,  as  Rolfe  Poythress,  who  was 
lost  in  a  recent  encounter  with  Logan's  braves, 
when  on  duty,  under  orders  from  General 
Lewis." 

The  men,  Flower  in  particular,  looked  at  her 
in  amazement.  Not  a  tremour  in  the  lines  of 
her  stern  Roman  face,  not  a  quaver  of  the  voice 
betrayed  maternal  feeling. 

"  A  young  man  well  spoken  of  in  the  county, 
as  full  of  true  martial  spirit,"  said  Lord  Fairfax. 
"  Accept,  madam,  my  sincerest  condolences  in 
your  melancholy  loss." 

"  I   thank   you,   my    Lord,"    she    answered 


198          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

briefly.  "  If  I  had  not  yielded  to  his  and 
General  Lewis'  solicitations  to  enter  him  upon 
a  military  life,  I  should  not  now  be  under  the 
necessity  of  telling  you  that  he  was  not  my  son, 
but  a  child  adopted  under  unusual  circum- 
stances. The  only  child  of  my  marriage  with 
Richard  Poythress  was  snatched  from  my  arms 
and  brutally  murdered  in  my  sight,  by  an  Ind- 
ian, in  the  raid  when  they  carried  off  my  hus- 
band to  his  death.  When  this  happened,  I 
fell  down  and  lay  like  one  dead,  and  was  over- 
looked in  the  savages'  retreat.  After  I  came 
to  myself,  and  had  realised  my  condition,  I 
first  dug  a  grave  for  my  child  and  covered 
him  away,  then  started,  I  knew  not  whither,  in 
search  of  I  knew  not  what.  .  .  .  From  that 
day  to  this,  I  have  never  shed  a  tear.  .  .*.  I 
went  on  through  the  forest.  I  had  no  wishes, 
no  hopes,  no  fears.  Death  was  the  same  to  me 
as  life.  .  .  .  At  last,  I  came  to  a  house  that 
had  been  sacked  and  burnt.  I  recognised  the 
farm  that  belonged  to  a  thrifty  Scotch-Irish 
couple,  who  had  succeeded  in  all  their  enter- 
prises—  Angus  McDuffie  was  the  farmer's 
name,  but  I  knew  no  more  of  them  than  that. 
You  may  recall  him,  my  Lord,  as  one  of  the 
settlers  upon  Burden's  grant." 

"  Yes,  yes  !  Burden  was  my  agent  in  '37  — 
and  afterward  did  business  on  his  own  account," 
said  the  old  man,  rallying  his  memory.  "He 
brought  over  many  colonists,  and  their  de- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          199 

scendants  have  proved  of  our  best  stock  —  but 
I  interrupt  you,  madam,  in  a  tale  that,  although 
harrowing,  is  unfortunately  like  many  another 
that  has  come  under  my  ken." 

"The  McDuffies,  husband  and  wife,  had 
been  killed  and  scalped,  and  the  spectacle  of 
their  bodies  robbed  me  of  my  little  remaining 
strength.  I  was  exhausted  from  my  wandering 
in  the  woods,  so  I  dropped  down  in  the  little 
garden  where  they  lay,  and  gave  up  all  wish  to 
live.  Just  then,  I  heard  a  little  moan  —  an- 
other —  then  another.  I  struggled  up,  and 
listened.  After  it  had  gone  on  till  I  could  no 
longer  bear  it,  I  went  in  search  of  the  sound. 
Under  a  clump  of  currant  bushes  lay  a  child, 
about  the  size  of  mine  —  he  was  badly  wounded, 
but  conscious  of  my  presence,  and  he  tried  to 
hold  out  his  little  arms  to  me.  At  first  I 
stared  at  him  in  a  dull  sort  of  way,  and  did  not 
move  to  take  him.  Then  he  cried,  and  I  took 
him.  .  .  .  But  why  go  on  ?  You  may  guess 
the  rest.  In  gratitude  because  he  saved  my 
reason,  I  nursed  the  child  back  into  health  and 
reared  him  as  my  own.  There  was  not  one  left 
to  say  whether  he  was  or  not.  The  McDuf- 
fies were  wiped  out  of  existence.  Even  my 
brothers,  who,  upon  hearing  of  my  terrible 
plight,  came  from  the  low  country,  and  ended 
by  living  with  me,  were  unaware  of  the  real 
circumstances.  I  called  the  boy  by  my  own 
child's  name.  Day  and  night  I  worked  for 


2OO          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

him,  educated  him  like  a  gentleman,  and  he 
grew  up  to  be,  not  the  joy  —  for,  to  me,  there 
is  no  such  word  —  but  the  stay,  of  my  hard 
life.  When  Colonel  Hugh  Poythress  came  in 
search  of,  and  offered  provision  for,  his  brother's 
child,  I  was  dismayed.  I  could  not  tell  him 
the  truth,  still  less  would  I  receive  a  share  of 
the  estate  Rolfe  had  no  right  to  claim.  My 
persistence  angered  Colonel  Poythress.  We 
quarrelled.  He  left  us  in  sore  vexation,  and 
I  have  not  seen  him  since.  When  he  went 
out  of  my  house,  I  said  to  him,  '  I  will  never 
again  in  this  world  hold  speech  with  you '  — 
nor  have  I.  He  meant  well,  perhaps,  but  his 
people  had  cast  my  husband  out,  and,  with  me, 
a  breach  is  never  healed.  I  suppose  you,  my 
Lord,  —  and  you,  gentlemen,  who  have  shown 
patience  in  listening  to  a  story  I  have  tried  to 
shorten,  —  now  understand  my  motives  in  mak- 
ing this  public  declaration.  If  I  did  wrong  in 
allowing  the  boy  to  grow  up  believing  himself 
a  Poythress,  I  undo  it  now.  He  is  dead,  he 
is  gone,  he  has  left  my  life  desolate,  but  I  still 
have  my  own  creed  of  honesty.  A  recent  let- 
ter from  Colonel  Poythress  informs  me  that  he 
has  just  settled  upon  Rolfe  and  his  heirs  for- 
ever such  a  sum  as  would  have  been  Richard's 
had  not  my  wronged  husband  been  disinherited 
by  his  father.  I  want  you  all  to  bear  witness 
that  I  decline  that  money.  I  will  never  take 
a  penny  of  it.  I  have  lived  without  the  Poy- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          201 

thresses ;  let  them  see  that  I  can  die  without 
them.  That  is  all." 

So  rapidly  had  this  narrative  poured  from 
her  lips,  so  complete  the  spell  of  her  com- 
manding voice  and  figure,  that  no  one  had 
stirred  until  she  ended.  Then,  as,  with  a 
slight  curtsey  to  the  two  noblemen,  and  an 
inclination  of  her  haughty  head  to  the  aides- 
de-camp,  she  turned  to  leave  the  room,  Geof- 
fry  Flower  sprung  to  her  side  and  offered  her 
his  arm. 

"  I  was  your  son's  friend,  madam,"  he  said, 
in  a  low  tone.  "  I  admired  him,  loved  him, 
as  he  deserved.  The  news  of  his  death,  that 
has  but  just  come  to  us,  to-day,  is  felt  by  me 
with  a  sense  of  personal  bereavement.  Will 
you  not,  therefore,  accept  from  me  any  service 
that  he  might  have  rendered  you  ?  " 

But  Helen  Poythress,  although  turning  upon 
the  handsome  young  officer  a  softer  look  than 
had  yet  relieved  the  lines  of  her  stern  weather- 
beaten  face,  declined  assistance.  The  invitation 
of  Lord  Fairfax  that  she  should  take  posses- 
sion of  an  uninhabited  cabin  in  the  grounds, 
and  remain  there  as  his  guest  as  long  as  she 
felt  inclined,  fared  likewise.  Standing  upon 
the  porch  until  her  horses  came  around,  —  one 
of  them  bestridden  by  the  brother,  who  had 
proved  to  be  a  very  oyster  of  reticence  to  the 
hangers-on  of  the  establishment,  the  other  led 
by  the  grey  old  negro  man  upon  his  mule,  — 


202          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

she  mounted  unaided,  and  soon  all  trace  of 
the  odd  cortege  had  disappeared. 

"  An  eccentric,  morbid,  and  most  unhappy 
creature,"  said  the  master  of  Greenway,  when 
Flower  rejoined  him,  in  the  doorway,  where  he 
had  stood  to  see  Mrs.  Poythress  leave.  "It 
returns  to  me,  now,  that  I  have  heard  some- 
thing of  her  rebuff  of  our  friend  Poythress' 
overtures.  Her  case  has  affected  you,  my 
young  friend,  and  I  myself  am  not  insensible 
to  its  poignancy.  But  alas  !  'tis,  in  the  his- 
tory of  our  border  families,  an  oft-told  tale. 
I  have  desired  my  secretary  to  make  note  of 
the  lady's  statement,  which  I  shall  duly  sub- 
mit to  Colonel  Poythress." 

"  My  Lord,"  said  Geoffry,  who  hardly  knew 
how  to  frame  his  request,  so  burning  was  he 
with  the  excitement  of  an  idea  that,  during 
the  recital  of  Helen  Poythress'  woe,  had  sprung 
full-fledged  into  his  brain,  "  I  do  not  know  how 
it  may  strike  you ;  if  'tis  a  liberty,  I  stand  re- 
buked. But  Rolfe  Poythress  was  my  friend, 
and,  in  the  family  of  my  Cousin  Poythress,  he 
will  ever  be  regarded  as  a  dear  kinsman.  I 
have  time  upon  my  hands.  If  you  could  put 
me  in  the  way  of  looking  up  the  records  of 
the  settlers  on  or  near  your  lands,  it  is  possi- 
ble I  may  come  upon  some  reference  to  the 
McDuffies  that  would  be  of  value  and  interest 
to  Colonel  Poythress." 

"  The  records  are  quite  at  your  disposal," 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          203 

said  his  lordship.  "  They  have  served  some- 
times to  entertain  other  friends  from  home, 
who  cared  to  know  how  we  have  populated  so 
much  of  the  wilderness.  Now  that  I  think 
of  it,  'twas  your  Uncle  Avenel  who  last  en- 
gaged one  of  my  secretaries  to  give  him  access 
to  the  papers." 

Geoffry,  afraid  that  his  face  would  betray 
him,  bent  over  to  caress  the  favourite  hound 
of  Lord  Fairfax,  standing  at  his  master's  knee. 
His  heart  beat  like  a  trip  hammer.  He  felt 
now  there  could  be  no  doubt  of  Avenel's  rea- 
sons for  "  mousing  "  about  in  the  north  coun- 
try. He  could  hardly  wait  till  the  slow  speech 
of  the  old  man  brought  him  to  the  end  of  his 
kindly  sentences. 

With  permission  thus  gained,  he  repaired  at 
once  to  the  massive  and  isolated  cc  office,"  so 
built  for  protection  of  its  contents  against  fire 
and  Indians.  The  accumulations  of  records 
relating  to  Lord  Fairfax's  transactions  in  land, 
during  his  long  control  over  a  territory  com- 
prising about  one-quarter  of  the  present  lim- 
its of  Virginia,  were  enormous.  There  were, 
in  addition,  numerous  papers  deposited  for  safe 
keeping  among  these  archives  by  gentry  and 
small  farmers,  including  wills.  To  a  lover  of 
such  things,  the  field  was  rich  beyond  com- 
pare. But  Geoffry — at  ordinary  times  a  book- 
worm, a  delver  in  manuscripts,  through  pure 
love  of  research  —  was  now  too  nervously  ex- 


204          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

cited  to  do  more  than  turn  over  bundle  after 
bundle,  file  after  file,  in  a  humdrum  and  me- 
chanical fashion,  looking  eagerly  for  a  name 
that  seemed  nowhere  to  occur.  Just  at  that 
moment  a  McDuffie  of  any  sort  would  have 
appeared  to  him  a  Kohinoor ! 

At  last,  folded  away  among  a  parcel  of 
dusty  land  grants  and  contracts,  he  came  upon 
a  paper  which  had  apparently  lain  for  many 
years  untouched ;  no  trace  of  disturbance  was 
upon  it ;  and  the  depositor,  having  here  placed 
it  in  safety,  had,  perhaps,  gone  away  to  die. 
This  theory,  conceived  by  Flower  in  idle 
thought  as  he  unfolded  the  document,  was 
surprisingly  confirmed  by  the  first  words  of  it 
he  read. 

"  Deed  from  the  chiefs  of  the  Six  United  Nations 
for  land  to  A.  McDuffie,  November  Qth,  1754." 

Flower's  eye  travelled  at  too  great  a  rate 
of  speed  over  the  quaint  document  to  enable 
him  to  enjoy  its  phraseology. 

"To  all  people  to  whom  these  presents  shall  come 
—  Greeting  :  Know  ye  that  we,  Abraham,  a  Mohawk 
chief;  Sennghors,  an  Oneida  chief;  Sagnarisera,  the 
chief  of  the  Tuscaroras ;  Burt,  an  Onondaga  chief; 
Tagaaia,  a  Cayuga  chief;  and  Gaustrax,  a  Seneca 
chief;  chiefs  and  sachems  of  the  Six  United  Nations, 
and  being  and  effectually  representing  all  the  tribes 
of  the  Six  United  Nations,  send  greeting.  Whereas, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          205 

Johonerissa,  Scaroyadia,  Cosswentanica  —  chiefs  or 
sachems  of  the  Six  United  Nations  —  did,  by  their 
deed  duly  executed,  bearing  date  the  2nd  day  of 
August,  1754,  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  fol- 
lowing goods  and  merchandise  being  paid  and  deliv- 
ered to  them  at  a  full  council  of  the  Six  United 
Nations,  Delawares  and  Shawanese,  on  the  2nd  of 
August,  1754,  that  is  to  say:  200  pieces  of  cloth, 
300  Duffield  blankets,  260  pair  of  half  thick  stock- 
ings, 150  shirts,  15  pieces  of  calico,  10  pieces  of 
callimanco,  10  pieces  of  embossed  serge,  40  pounds 
of  vermilion,  30  gross  of  gartering,  40  pieces  of  rib- 
bons, 45  dozen  of  knives,  400  pounds  of  gunpowder, 
500  pounds  of  bar  lead,  2,000  gun  flints,  30  pounds 
of  brass  kettles,  200  pounds  of  thread,  900  needles, 
six  dozen  jews-harps,  10  dozen  tobacco  tongs,  and 
80  pounds  of  tobacco ;  grant  and  sell  to  Alan  Mc- 
Duffie, adopted  son  of  Angus  McDuffie,  of  the 
County  of  Frederick,  in  the  province  of  Virginia, — 
in  fee,  a  certain  tract  or  parcel  of  land  situate  —  " 

The  deed  dropped  from  Flower's  hand. 
Alan  McDuffie,  adopted  son  of  Angus  Mc- 
Duffie !  Alan !  Here  was  the  name  borne 
by  the  last  heir  of  Avenel.  The  blood  rushed 
into  Flower's  temples.  When  he  had  recov- 
ered from  his  first  surprise,  he  fell  to  wonder- 
ing why  his  precious  uncle  had  passed  over 
the  discovery  of  a  document  so  convincing ; 
and  examined  it  again,  together  with  the  packet 
from  which  he  had  taken  it.  But  they  clearly 
had  escaped  Avenel,  to  fall  into  Geoffry's  hands. 
On  rereading  the  deed,  it  was  also  plain  to  him 


206          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

that  the  old  Scotchman  had  intended  to  make 
special  provision  for  the  waif  drifted  into  his 
hands.  "  Chiefs  as  aforesaid,"  he  hurried  on  :  — 

"  By  these  presents,  do  grant,  bargain,  sell,  alien, 
release,  enfeoffe,  ratify,  and  fully  confirm  as  to  his 
Most  Sacred  Majesty  George  III.,  King  of  Great 
Britain,  France,  and  Ireland,  Defender  of  the  Faith, 
etc.  —  (c  Hullo  !  what's  the  King  got  to  do  with  it  ? ' 
said  bewildered  Geoffry) —  his  heirs  and  assigns  for 
the  use,  benefit,  and  behoof  of  the  said  —  (c  Here  it 
is  again,  as  large  as  life')  —  Alan  McDuffie,  adopted 
son  of  Angus  McDuffie  .  .  .  together  with  all  mines, 
mineral  ores,  trees,  woods,  underwoods,  waters  and 
water  courses,  profits,  commodities,  advantages,  rights, 
liberties,  privileges,  hereditaments,  and  appurtenances 
.  .  .  one  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land,  be  the  same 
more  or  less." 

"'Tis  a  principality  the  poor  fellow  has  slipped 
away  from  ! "  meditated  the  young  soldier,  turn- 
ing to  the  "  Nation  marks  "  of  the  chiefs,  duly 
affixed  opposite  their  signatures,  as  follows: 
"The  Steel,"  "The  Stone,"  "The  Cross," 
"The  Mountain,"  "The  Pipe,"  and  "The 
High  Hill."  Nothing  was  lacking.  To  the 
names  of  witnesses  and  of  "  The  Interpreter 
for  the  Crown,"  the  deed  was  complete ;  not 
only  was  it  a  rare  historical  curiosity  for  some 
searcher  of  future  days,  but  also,  as  far  as 
Flower  knew,  the  guarantee  of  a  fortune  to 
Alan  McDuffie  and  his  heirs.  That  this  was 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          207 

but  one  of  the  speculations  of  shrewd  Angus 
McDuffie  with  the  Indians,  there  was  every 
reason  to  suppose. 

Poor  "  Rolfe  Poythress,"  or  "Alan  McDuffie," 
or  "  Alan  Carnes,"  or  "  Alan  Poythress,  fifth  Earl 
of  Avenel !  "  Only  that  day  Geoffry  had  heard 
him  talked  about  between  two  men  in  camp. 
A  hundred  instances  of  his  courage,  endurance, 
magnanimity,  had  been  cited.  And  he  was  gone 
to  dust  under  an  Indian  tomahawk!  What 
did  any  of  this  matter  to  him,  now? 

But  Flower,  having,  with  an  Englishman's 
pertinacity,  made  up  his  mind  to  find  out  what 
Lord  Avenel  had  been  doing  in  the  office, 
would  not  stop  at  the  deed.  He  felt  con- 
vinced that,  somewhere,  there  was  another  clew, 
could  he  only  lay  hold  of  it. 

Happening  to  look  above  his  head,  he  saw 
in  a  pigeon-hole  a  yellow  parcel  of  papers, 
older  in  appearance  than  any  he  had  examined. 
Mechanically,  —  and  by  the  singular  process 
of  guiding  induction  that  sometimes  leads  one 
straight  to  the  spot  where  it  is  intended  he 
should  go,  —  he  sprang  upon  a  chair,  laid  his 
hand  upon  this  packet,  and,  on  drawing  it  out, 
saw  that  it  had  recently  been  handled.  In  the 
centre  was  thrust  a  paper,  folded  small,  for  the 
purpose  of  inserting  it. 

And  this  paper,  lying  open  in  Flower's  hands, 
proved  to  be  the  last  will  and  testament  of 
Angus  McDuffie,  bearing  date  a  few  months 


208          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

before  the  Indian  attack  upon  Wild  Cat  Hol- 
low, in  1775  !  But  Flower's  satisfaction  in  his 
find  was  quickly  overpowered  by  the  startling 
discovery  that  the  name  of  the  testator's  bene- 
ficiary, following  that  of  his  wife  Sarah,  had  in 
the  three  instances  where  it  appeared  in  the 
document,  been  carefully  —  and  recently — cut 
out! 

For  the  first  time  since  he  had  received 
Betty's  pitiful  little  note,  announcing  her  en- 
gagement with  his  uncle,  Flower  now  ventured 
to  take  it  out  and  reread  its  contents.  They 

five  him  courage  to  pen  a  full  letter  to  Hugh 
oythress,  asking  him  for  God's  sake  to  post- 
pone the  marriage  until  Flower  should  have  an 
opportunity  to  verify  certain  facts  that  now 
made  it  seem  impossible  the  nuptials  should 
go  on.  The  letter  —  despatched  by  a  courier  to 
the  low  country  from  Lord  Dunmore  —  left  not 
a  day  too  soon.  On  the  morrow  the  army  of 
the  Northern  Division,  now  swelled  to  about 
fifteen  hundred  men,  broke  camp  and  set  for- 
ward for  Fort  Pitt  —  the  site  where,  it  will 
be  remembered,  had  once  stood  famous  Fort 
Duquesne,  burnt  by  the  French  in  1758  —  after 
which  act,  according  to  Washington,  they  had 
"run  away  by  the  light  of  it,"  when  General 
Forbes'  army  of  regulars  and  provincials, 
among  them  a  brigade  of  Virginians  and  Penn- 
sylvanians  commanded  by  Washington  himself, 
was  close  upon  them. 


X 


UT  my  dear  "  —  said  the  Colonel  — 
"And  if  the  charge  were  true,  though, 
to  be  sure,  charge  there  is  none,  only 
dark  horrid  hints  —  it  had  come  better  from 
another  than  from  Captain  Flower.  A  disap- 
pointed suitor  —  and  about  his  own  uncle  — 
Really,  Mr.  Poythress,  I  believe  that  young 
man  is  not  what  we  fancied  him.  When  I 
think  of  the  kindness  lavished  on  him,  in  this 
house  —  " 

"  Which  he  has  more  than  repaid,  if  he  saves 
my  child's  future  —  " 

" —  his  conduct  to  me  seems  monstrous. 
Haven't  you  the  feelings  of  a  father  ?  To  so 
hazard  a  marriage  that  would  advance  our  Betty 
before  every  lady  in  the  Province.  For  should 
we  put  it  off,  'twould  be  small  wonder  if 
Avenel  withdraws  definitely." 

"  I  would  that  he  might,"  was  the  weary 
answer. 

"There,  now,  husband,  that's  so  like  you. 

I   believe   everybody  is  bewitched  about   this 

thing.     Even  Betty  has  been  behaving  in  an 

untoward  fashion,  latterly.     Instead  of  rejoicing 

p  209 


2io          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

at  the  prize  she  has  drawn  in  the  matrimonial 
lottery,  she  goes  from  high  spirits  into  fits  of 
crying.  Why,  yesterday,  when  the  patterns 
came  from  the  mercer's  in  Williamsburg,  and 
I  called  her  to  see  the  sweetest  white-and- 
silver  I'd  picked  out  for  the  wedding  gown, 
she  just  touched  it  with  one  finger,  and  looked 
away,  the  tears  coming  into  her  eyes." 

"  Say  you  so  ?  "  exclaimed  the  Colonel,  joy- 
fully. "  Then,  my  dear  Bess,  I  breathe  free. 
'Tis  plain  my  poor  dear  girl  has  let  herself  be 
overtempted  by  rank  and  riches.  If  she  cares 
no  more  than  that,  gladly  will  I  send  our  little 
kinsman  —  who  goes  against  my  grain  mightily 
—  packing  about  his  business." 

"Colonel  Poythress,"  said  his  lady,  rallying 
all  her  scorn  (and  inches)  to  confront  this 
alarming  movement,  "if  you  cannot  understand 
the  workings  of  a  mother's  heart,  at  least  you 
might  respect  them." 

"  I'm  blessed  if  I  understand  anything,"  said 
the  baited  man.  "You  know,  Bess,  whether 
I  desired  this  alliance,  or  merely  yielded  to  it 
upon  your  representation  that  my  girl's  happi- 
ness was  involved." 

"And  I  spoke  true.  'Twas  her  own  affair, 
accepting  him ;  and  when  she  came  to  ask  me 
to  write  to  you  that  she  had  made  up  her 
mind,  she  looked  proud  as  a  queen.  And  if  I 
do  crave  for  her  this  title  and  fortune  that 
may  never  come  to  me,  is  it  any  wonder  ?  Is 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          21 1 

Betty  the  girl  to  be  thrown  away  upon  some 
tobacco-planting  squire  that  will  bury  her  alive 
on  a  plantation?  or  shall  she  follow  the  drum 
with  a  soldier  ?  Why,  ever  since  our  girl  was 
a  tiny  thing,  she  has  heard  stories  from  the 
black  people  about  the  great  lord  that  was 
to  sail  across  the  sea  and  carry  her  away  to 
live  in  his  palace.  Every  one  has  predicted 
for  her  a  great  marriage ;  and,  now  the  great 
marriage  has  come,  are  we  to  cast  it  aside 
like  a  worn  glove  or  an  old  shoe  ? " 

"  If  the  fellow's  not  fit  for  her,  he  must  go," 
said  papa,  cutting  short  Madam  Poythress'  fine 
speeches  in  the  disagreeable  fashion  of  hus- 
bands with  which  wives  are  perfectly  familiar. 

Madam  Poythress  burst  into  tears. 

"  And  this,  when  you  have  just  returned  to 
me  after  so  long  an  absence !  It  must  be  that 
I  have  grown  old  and  plain  —  " 

"  Is  this  relevant,  Bess  ? "  asked  her  husband, 
mildly. 

"  I  know  not  what  is  relevant.  I  care  for 
naught,  since  your  love  for  me  has  cooled." 

After  Poythress  had  made  answer  by  a  loyal 
kiss,  and  sundry  assurances  of  a  nature  evi- 
dently satisfactory,  the  appeased  lady  returned 
to  the  charge. 

"  Then  do  as  you  think  best,  husband,  and 
I  will  abide  by  it.  But  if  I  were  you,  I  should 
say  nothing  to  Betty,  but  that  the  marriage 
must  be  deferred.  Avenel  will  not  return  here 


212          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

for  some  weeks  and,  before  that,  all  may  be 
settled  happily." 

"  Better  put  the  marriage  out  of  mind,  dear. 
No  doubt  Flower  knows  what  he  is  about ;  and 
I  think  your  own  good  sense,  and  your  love 
for  Betty,  will  soon  show  you  that  we  have 
made  a  mistake,  and  should  be  glad  to  repair 
it  before  it  has  gone  too  far." 

"  Trust  Flower  for  trumping  up  something," 
said  the  mother,  unconvinced.  "  I'll  declare, 
Betty's  beaux  keep  me  in  perpetual  hot  water. 
That  dreadful  duel  —  though,  to  be  sure,  there 
was  no  blood  shed  —  between  Major  Trump- 
ington  and  Charlie  Steptoe  at  the  Court-House, 
last  year !  For  a  week  I  could  hardly  sleep  o' 
nights ;  and  she  cool  as  a  cucumber  —  the  little 
minx  !  " 

"  'Twould  have  been  a  sensible  pleasure  to 
me  had  she  cared  for  Geoffry  Flower  —  "  ven- 
tured the  Colonel,  feeling  himself  to  be  on 
delicate  ground. 

"  Captain  Flower  will  know  better  than  to 
show  himself  here  again,  I  fancy,"  returned  the 
lady,  tossing  her  head.  "  But  there,  you  have 
other  letters  in  your  hand  unopened,  Colonel 
Poythress." 

"  So  dismayed  was  I  by  the  contents  of 
Flower's,  I  thought  naught  of  them,"  said  her 
husband.  "  The  budget  was  sent  to  me  from 
Mount  Vernon,  where  'twas  obligingly  left  by 
Mr.  Triplet,  on  his  way  from  the  Ferry. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          213 

What's  here  —  a  letter  from  General  Lewis  at 
Headquarters  at  Staunton  ?  God  send  it  may 
not  —  ah!  the  poor  lad,  the  poor  lad!  Our 
dear  Rolfe  is  gone,  Bess ;  read  it,  wife,  I  can- 


not see." 


Madam  Poythress,  receiving  the  sad  intel- 
ligence with  true  womanly  feeling,  wept  over 
the  boy's  untimely  end,  his  mother's  desolation, 
and  the  sorrow  this  event  would  cause  to  her 
own  flock.  For  the  time,  even  the  threatened 
downfall  of  Betty's  castle-in-the-air  retired  into 
littleness.  Leaning  her  head  upon  her  hus- 
band's shoulder,  the  two  mingled  honest  tears. 

The  scene  of  this  conjugal  dialogue  was 
"  The  Chamber  "  —  pronounced  with  a  broad 
a  ;  a  courtesy  title,  in  an  old  Virginian  house, 
of  the  mother's  room  on  the  ground  floor,  pos- 
sessing generally  an  exit  out  of  doors,  by  which 
came  and  went  petitioners  from  the  negro  quar- 
ters, to  claim  dole  or  sympathy  from  their 
mistress.  Here,  also,  work  was  cut  out  and 
distributed ;  lessons  were  given  to  the  female 
slaves  in  dusting,  polishing  floors,  mending, 
darning,  and  knitting  ;  and  the  -children  were 
taught  their  catechism  on  Sunday  afternoon  — 
to  say  nothing  of  receiving  such  daily  expres- 
sions of  maternal  authority  as  dosing,  lecturing, 
and  penitential  elevation  upon  stools. 

"The  Chamber"  was  a  large,  airy,  exquisitely 
neat  room,  full  of  the  homely  pleasantness  that 
children  love ;  and  by  them  much  affected,  in 


214          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

spite  of  the  memory  of  discipline  that  haunted 
certain  spots.  By  the  length  of  time  the  doors 
of  this  apartment  remained  shut,  those  outside 
were  enabled  to  reckon  the  magnitude  of  the 
offence,  ailment,  or  confidence  under  considera- 
tion within  ;  and,  in  the  hall  leading  away  from 
it,  May  and  Hughey  (the  latter  at  home  for 
the  school  vacation)  now  waited,  fixing  an  eager 
gaze  upon  the  mahogany  panels  of  the  barrier 
that  excluded  them  from  the  joy  of  their  father's 
presence. 

"  I  believe  he's  getting  it,"  said  Hughey, 
looking  wise. 

"  You  silly  boy  !  "  cried  May. 

"  Well,  I'm  glad  'tis  not  me,  anyhow,"  went 
on  Madam  Poythress'  darling  heir.  "That 
little  cupboard  behind  the  chimney-place  —  I 
couldn't  ever  think  of  it,  without  smelling 
castor-oil !  But  she  keeps  lollipops  in  there, 
too,  for  I  hooked  some  yesterday." 

"  Hughey,  do  be  quiet,  there's  a  dear.  I 
don't  want  to  listen,  but  I  think  —  I  think —  'tis 
mamma  crying !  And  mamma  hardly  ever  cries. 
Perhaps,"  she  added,  "  we  ought  to  go  away." 

"  I  hope  'tis  an  express  to  say  the  Indians 
have  scalped  old  Avenel,"  said  Hughey,  stoi- 
cally. "  For  there's  no  fun  in  the  house  since 
Betty's  been  going  to  be  a  Countess." 

"  Hush,  Hughey,  'tis  a  secret  yet.  But  I, 
too,  wish  our  brother-to-be  had  never  set  foot 
at  Vue  de  1'Eau." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          215 

"  Mamma  says  Betty  can  have  four  coaches, 
if  she  likes,  and  a  palace  far  grander  than  the 
Governor's.  How  fine  England  must  be, 
May  !  But  I  like  the  Province  better.  Betty 
says  I  may  have  all  the  shooting  I  want  at 
Avenel  —  but  they've  no  canvas-backs  there, 
and  it  seems  a  dull  place,  to  my  mind.  Now, 
if  Betty'd  taken  Flower  —  May,  why  do  you 
look  so  dumpish  ?  By  George,  I'd  as  soon  be 
back  at  school !  " 

"  I'm  not  dumpish,"  said  the  girl,  making 
an  attempt  to  smile ;  "  I'm  going  to  play  with 
you  all  day,  now ;  and,  if  you  like,  we'll  tilt  at 
a  ring  on  the  pony  this  afternoon." 

"  I  know  a  trick  or  two  Rolfe  taught  me 
that'll  beat  you  easily,"  said  the  lad.  "  I  wish 
old  Rolfe  hadn't  gone  fighting,  or  that  I  was 
with  him.  If  I  tell  you  something,  sister,  will 
you  never,  never  tell  ?  Well  then,  I  was  in  the 
stable-yard  just  now,  and  I  heard  two  of  the 
men  talking,  and  they  said  'twas  rumoured  at 
Dumfries  —  whence  John  rid  to-day  with  the 
horse-doctor  for  the  brown  mare  —  that  Rolfe 
had  been  hurt  in  a  skirmish  with  the  Indians 
—  at  least,  I  thought  'twas  Rolfe,  but  when  I 
asked  them,  the  men  said  'twas  not  so,  I  was 
mistaken,  and  made  me  promise  to  say  nothing 
about  it  at  the  great  house,  till  the  master 
spoke.  But,  I'm  almost  sure ;  and,  May,  I 
have  been  heavy-hearted  since.  I  had  to  tell 
somebody." 


2i 6          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

May's  heart  leaped  with  a  sharp  pain  she  had 
never  known  before.  Clutching  her  brother  by 
the  arm,  she  tried  to  speak,  and  failed ;  and 
the  door  of  The  Chamber  that  moment  open- 
ing, their  parents  came  out,  pale  and  grave,  and 
told  them  they  need  never  hope  to  see  their 
Cousin  Rolfe  again. 

"  He  was  my  only  brother's  son,"  said  the 
Colonel,  solemnly.  "  And  I  had  looked  to  him 
to  lift  poor  Dick's  name  from  the  dust,  and 
to  found  a  new  branch  of  our  old  line  in  the 
Province.  But  God's  will  be  done.  He  has 
fallen  fighting  in  defence  of  his  native  soil,  and 
resignation  becomes  us  who  survive  him.  I 
shall  rejoice  if  my  own  son  learns,  from  this 
afflicting  loss  of  a  young  relative  so  recently 
among  us  in  full  health  and  strength,  the  lesson 
of  a  manly  life  and  an  heroic  death." 

Hughey,  who  had  burst  into  loud  weeping, 
covered  the  silence  of  Matoaca,  who,  dry- 
eyed  and  motionless,  stood  staring  into  space. 
Betty,  having  heard,  in  her  room  above,  the 
unwonted  sounds  of  woe,  here  came  running 
down  the  stairs,  and  stopped  in  alarm  upon  the 
landing  to  survey  the  group.  In  her  combing- 
gown  of  rose-colour,  with  the  auburn  locks 
hanging  loose  around  her  fair  throat,  the  girl 
had  never  looked  more  bewitching.  When 
she  caught  the  last  sentence  of  her  father's 
impressive  speech,  Betty  did  not  think  to 
connect  it  with  any  but  the  one  most  often 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          217 

present  in  her  rebel  thoughts.  She  uttered 
a  frightened  note,  grew  white  where  she  had 
been  rosy-red  and,  before  her  father  could  go 
to  catch  her,  sank  in  a  heap  upon  the  stairs, 
crying  out  Geoffry  Flower's  name,  in  accents 
of  feeling  unmistakable. 

None  of  them  ever  forgot  those  days  at  Vue 
de  1'Eau,  following  the  tidings  of  Rolfe's  loss. 
The  good  Colonel,  who  had  his  hands  full  of 
public  troubles,  as  well  as  the  cares  of  his  own 
fireside,  spent  most  of  his  days  in  riding  about 
the  neighbourhood,  lifting  up  his  voice  in  earnest 
beseechings  that  his  old  friends  would  desist 
from  action  until  the  British  Ministry  could 
send  to  the  political  situation  the  relief  for 
which  he  confidently  hoped.  But  the  neigh- 
bours had  done  with  waiting  upon  the  British 
Ministry.  They  were  now  busily  engaged  in 
organising  a  company  of  volunteers,  whose 
smart  new  uniforms  of  blue  turned  up  with 
buff  made  gay  many  a  waste  place  at  a  cross- 
roads' four  corners.  Drum  and  fife  startled 
the  greenwood  glades.  Hughey,  coming  in 
one  day,  with  a  request  to  be  allowed  to  train 
with  the  Fairfax  volunteers,  had  his  ears  boxed 
by  his  mamma,  and  was  lectured  by  his  papa, 
until  the  whole  system  of  the  political  world 
broke  up  in  stars  within  his  cranium. 

What  went  on  in  this  little  corner  of  Vir- 
ginia was  a  sample  of  the  spirit  throughout  the 


2i 8          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Colonies.  The  scheme  of  a  Continental  Con- 
gress, first  proposed  by  the  Sons  of  Liberty  in 
New  York,  and  put  into  prompt  operation  by 
the  bold  Virginians  in  their  meeting  at  Raleigh 
Tavern,  had  fired  the  whole  country  to  emula- 
tion. Massachusetts,  under  the  spirited  leader- 
ship of  Samuel  Adams,  who,  at  the  June 
meeting  of  their  Legislature,  had  locked  the 
door  of  the  hall  and  pocketed  the  key  until  he 
could  see  his  measures  adopted,  had  voted  to 
send  five  delegates.  All  the  other  Colonies, 
excepting  Georgia,  who,  however,  consented 
to  abide  by  the  decision  of  the  rest,  had  fol- 
lowed suit.  The  electric  spark  of  brotherhood 
had  flashed  from  end  to  end  of  the  American 
settlements. 

Hugh  Poythress,  realising  the  weight  of 
these  things  to  the  utmost,  would  not,  al- 
though his  arguments  fell  upon  deaf  ears, 
give  up  belief  in  the  ultimate  concession  by 
the  Crown  of  all  just  demands.  His  hope 
of  relief  through  the  attempt  by  the  Gov- 
ernor to  call  a  new  Assembly  on  the  nth  of 
August  —  which  the  general  disturbance  of 
public  feeling  had  made  it  necessary  to  defer 
until  November  —  had  failed.  The  letters  he 
had  sent  to  be  read  by  Washington  in  his 
capacity  as  chairman  and  moderator  of  the 
peopled  meetings  of  their  county,  during  the 
summer,  had  been  listened  to  with  respect, 
but  without  conviction.  It  was  a  sore  dis- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          219 

tress  to  the  loyal  gentleman  to  go  from  house 
to  house  of  his  old  friends,  to  stand  with  the 
familiar  groups  of  neighbours  outside  the  church 
doors  after  service,  and  to  find  everywhere  that, 
"  with  the  remembrance  of  the  King,  horror 
was  associated " ;  that  "  he  seemed  to  stalk 
like  the  arch-enemy  of  mankind/'  Even  his 
intimates  —  men  bound  by  the  ties  of  a  life- 
time—  preferred  no  longer  to  talk  with  Poy- 
thress  about  public  affairs.  From  some  of 
them  he  had  been  obliged  to  endure  utterances 
bitterly  at  variance  with  his  principles.  The 
situation  was  becoming  daily  more  strained 
and  painful  to  his  gentle  spirit.  Sometimes 
he  thought  of  himself  as  a  straw  sucked  into 
a  whirlpool,  and  circling  round  and  round  be- 
fore destruction. 

An  intention,  formed  in  his  mind  upon  hear- 
ing of  Rolfe's  death,  —  to  ride  away  into  the 
up-country,  and  try  to  be  of  service  to  his 
afflicted  sister-in-law,  —  was  now  fixed.  He 
was  to  leave  in  a  day  or  two,  and,  to  Hughey's 
delight,  had  promised  to  take  the  lad  with 
him.  Poythress  did  not  care  to  admit  to 
himself,  that  his  departure  from  the  scene  at 
this  critical  juncture  of  county  politics  was  a 
virtual  acknowledgment  of  defeat.  But  it  did 
not  prevent  his  giving  liberally  money  to  the 
fund  for  the  Boston  poor,  and  goods  for  the 
same  purpose  to  the  ship  then  loading  in  the 
Potomac,  off  his  shore. 


22o          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

It  was  now  a  day  or  two  lacking  of  the 
time  fixed  for  George  Washington  to  repair  in 
company  with  his  brother  delegates,  Henry 
and  Pendleton,  to  Philadelphia,  for  the  open- 
ing of  the  new  Congress.  Poythress,  who  felt 
impelled  to  deliver  to  them  a  few  final  words 
of  friendly  remonstrance,  had  determined  to 
visit  Mount  Vernon  for  the  purpose,  and  was 
seated  in  his  library  pondering  over  what  was 
wisest  for  him  to  say,  when  his  wife,  much 
excited,  came  into  the  room. 

"Troubles  never  come  singly,"  said  the 
good  lady,  setting  her  key-basket  on  the  table, 
and  dropping  palpitating  into  a  chair.  "  Here 
is  my  poor  Judith  passed  away  —  suddenly 
at  the  last,  though  yesterday  the  doctor  gave 
me  little  room  for  hope  she  would  live  long. 
What  I  am  to  do  without  the  faithful  creature 
—  such  a  clear  starcher  of  the  girls'  tuckers, 
such  a  hand  at  cleaning  lace  !  And  in  fine 
cookery  not  her  match  on  the  Potomac  tide- 
water !  You  remember  my  Lord  the  Governor 
was  helped  three  times  to  her  lark  pasty,  the 
last  day  they  dined  with  us  in  town ;  and, 
husband,  there  was  something  on  her  mind 
before  she  died.  She  slept,  and  waked,  cry- 
ing out  to  the  Lord  for  mercy.  Ah,  poor 
soul  !  I  am  out  of  health  with  sitting  by  her 
bed.  I  wonder  what  was  the  real  story  of 
her  life  at  home  ? " 

"  Best  not  try  to  trace  it,  my  dear.      The 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          221 

class  she  represents  have  always  something 
behind  them  to  live  down  when  they  come 
out  to  us.  But  she  has  been  an  honest  and 
devoted  servant,  and  I  am  grieved  that  you 
have  this  new  care/' 

"  /  could  not  have  been  dreaming,"  went  on 
his  wife,  reluctantly ;  "  and  yet,  just  before 
she  died,  the  poor  creature  called  out  distinctly 
'  shame  on  Lord  Avenel  for  his  treatment  of 
his  brother's  son/  Then  she  fell  into  a  doze, 
and  started  up  again,  begging  (  Master  Geoffry  ' 
to  csee  a  foul  wrong  made  right/  And  all 
else  I  could  gather  was,  cit  may  be  that  the 
boy  is  living  yet/  Husband,  dear,  whatever 
could  she  mean  by  that  ? " 

"Great  Heavens!"  said  Hugh  Poythress, 
sitting  upright  in  his  chair.  "  What  new  pit 
of  duplicity  is  opening  beneath  my  feet  ?  " 

His  wife  hung  her  head.  She  knew  he  was 
still  deeply  offended  by  the  part  she  had  taken 
in  furthering  Betty's  engagement  with  Avenel 
that  had  come  to  an  end  so  crashingly.  It  had 
hurt  him  to  think  that  his  girl,  while  secretly 
loving  another  man,  should  have  been  so  near 
to  wrecking  herself  in  this  marriage  of  sheer 
ambition ;  and  that  his  wife  had  not  better  con- 
trolled, nay,  had  sanctioned,  the  treachery  — 
for  so  it  seemed  to  Hugh  Poythress'  straight- 
forward mind.  The  household,  ever  since,  had 
been  in  an  unnatural  attitude  of  separation ;  the 
women  keeping  apart  from  their  head,  con- 


222          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

scious  of  his  displeasure  —  the  boy,  Hughey, 
openly  wishing  for  the  day  to  come  when  he 
might  ride  away  from  this  dismal  atmosphere. 
And  now  again,  the  Colonel  felt  himself 
stopped  short  on  the  brink  of  something 
worse  than  any  that  had  gone  before.  The 
words  of  the  dying  housekeeper  —  that  might 
otherwise  have  been  set  down  to  the  fancies 
of  delirium — gained  weight  through  the  testi- 
mony of  his  wife  that  Judith  had  been  thrown 
into  the  greatest  agitation  by  the  arrival  of 
Lord  Avenel,  was  almost  unfitted  for  her 
duties,  and  had  in  every  way  avoided  meeting 
him.  That  it  was  through  urgent  solicita- 
tion only  her  mistress  had  induced  the  woman 
not  to  give  up  her  situation,  and  go  to  Williams- 
burg  or  Richmond,  in  search  of  a  new  place. 

"  Why  did  you  not  speak  to  me  of  this  ? " 
said  the  Colonel,  fixing  his  eyes  searchingly 
upon  the  speaker. 

"Because  —  because,"  said  she,  blushing 
crimson,  "  I  feared  it  would  turn  you  further 
against  the  Earl." 

"Thank  God  for  so  much  at  least  of  open 
speaking  !  "  said  Poythress  ;  and,  ashamed,  she 
glided  from  the  room. 

A  close  search  of  the  effects  of  Judith  Carnes 
resulted  only  in  the  discovery  of  a  will  be- 
queathing her  savings  to  a  distant  relative  in 
Devon.  There  was  no  trace  of  anything  to 
otherwise  indicate  her  connection  with  any 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          223 

human  being.  And  so,  the  sinning  woman  was 
laid  away  in  a  corner  of  the  Poythress  family 
burying-ground,  on  a  hill  looking  down  upon 
the  river,  her  stormy  history,  like  many  an- 
other of  its  kind,  covered  away  under  Virginia's 
friendly  sod. 

But  Colonel  Poythress,  to  whom  the  sugges- 
tion of  Flower's  letter  of  warning  against 
Avenel  was  thus  surprisingly  confirmed,  de- 
termined to  lose  no  time  in  seeing  both  uncle 
and  nephew,  and,  if  possible,  confronting  them 
with  one  another. 

As,  mounted  upon  his  satin-coated  Ajax, 
our  much-troubled  Colonel  was  setting  out 
from  his  own  door  for  Mount  Vernon  on  the 
morning  of  the  last  day  of  August,  he  espied, 
crossing  the  lawn  upon  her  way  from  the 
quarter,  where  she  had  been  to  visit  an  ailing 
servant,  his  daughter  Matoaca.  The  maiden 
walked  with  so  listless  a  step,  and  her  smile 
in  greeting  him  was  so  mechanical,  his  heart 
filled  up  with  love  and  pity  for  one  whose  truth 
had  never  failed  him.  On  the  spur  of  the 
moment,  he  invited  her  to  go  with  him  a-pil- 
lion,  as  she  had  often  done  before. 

"  That  will  I,  dearest  father,"  she  exclaimed 
gratefully.  "  Since  Betty  left  yesterday  on  her 
visit  to  Cousin  Mercer's,  I  am  like  the  black 
Poland  hen's  one  little  lonesome  chicken ;  for 
Hughey  will  do  nothing  but  catch  fish  and 


224          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

crabs  —  and  that  is  sport  I  do  despise.  If  you 
knew  how  I  want  to  see  my  dear  Colonel 
Washington  before  he  goes  —  but  I  dared  not 
ask,  now  all  is  so  changed  —  " 

Her  lip  trembling,  her  father  bade  her  run 
away  and  fetch  hood  and  cushion ;  and  soon 
she  was  perched  behind  his  broad  back,  —  a 
proceeding  to  which  Ajax,  upon  their  first  set- 
ting out,  had  always  to  be  made  forcibly  re- 
signed. May  did  not  fear  the  horse's 
caperings.  With  her  slender  arms  embracing 
her  father,  she  felt  happier  than  in  days  past. 
She  had  longed  to  chat  with  him,  to  comfort 
him  in  his  altered  spirits.  As  her  guileless 
talk  fell  on  the  Colonel's  ears,  it  did,  indeed, 
something  conduce  toward  the  end  desired. 
He  felt  that  it  was  good  to  have  her  so  near 
his  heavy  heart. 

"What  would  I  give  for  Hughey's  chance 
to  ride  with  you  to  the  up-country,"  she  said, 
presently,  with  a  sigh. 

"  Would  you  so,  darling  ?  Then  come  with 
us,"  said  the  father,  heartily.  "  But  for  the 
difference  in  gear,  you  are  as  much  a  man  as 
Hughey,  that  is,  as  far  as  endurance  of  fatigue 
—  and  'tis  a  lovely  season.  There  is  more 
than  one  house  of  friends  where  you  and  the 
boy  might  put  up  whilst  I  push  on  to  see  my 
poor  sister  Poythress." 

"  Oh  !  take  me  there,  papa,"  cried  Matoaca, 
with  a  deep,  choking  breath.  "  Cousin  Poy- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          225 

thress  has  sent  me  many  and  many  a  kind 
word  by  Rolfe,  and  I  believe  —  nay,  I  am  sure 
—  she  would  bid  me  welcome.  I  do  so  long 
to  share  her  grief,  to  see  his  home  that  I 
know  so  well  through  his  talk  of  it  —  " 

"  Come,  lady-bird,  your  sorrow  wakens  mine 
afresh,"  said  the  Colonel.  "  Let  us  rather  dis- 
cuss the  journey.  There  is  your  mother's 
leave  to  get,  remember." 

"  Father  dear,  she  had  thought  of  this  her- 
self. Only  this  morning,  when  she  called  me 
into  The  Chamber  to  take  bark,  she  said,  if 
she  dared,  she'd  pray  you  to  let  me  go  too. 
She  even  laid  out  my  holland  frocks — and  a 
better  one  for  Sundays ;  and  be  sure,  papa, 
she  will  bid  us  carry  the  work-bag  with  that 

shirt  of  yours  I've  been  sewing  this  many  a 

j      » 

day. 

"  That,  if  I  depended  on,  would  leave  me  a 
Bersarker,  indeed,"  said  he,  glad  of  the  more 
cheerful  turn  of  her  discourse.  "  Since  it 
seems  you  plotters  have  settled  it  all  before- 
hand, pray  what  is  the  use  of  the  slight  formal- 
ity of  asking  leave  of  me  ?  " 

"  Ah !  daddy  dear,"  cried  the  voice  behind 
him,  "once  we'd  have  dared  to  do  anything  — 
but  now —  " 

"  Never  mind  c  now,' '  said  the  Colonel, 
bristling  up.  "  You  are  to  go,  and  that's 
enough." 

The   reminder    of   his    domestic   grievances 


226          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

was,  however,  to  be  promptly  swept  away. 
From  the  lodge-house  at  Mount  Vernon,  old 
Bishop  (the  veteran  who  had  served  his  master 
in  Braddock's  war,  now  in  clover  with  his  fam- 
ily in  this  snug  retreat)  issued  to  give  the 
Colonel  the  military  salute,  before  opening 
the  gate. 

"All  well,  Bishop?"  said  Mr.  Poythress, 
pleasantly. 

"All  well,  Colonel.  Your  honour  will  find 
Mr.  Henry  and  Mr.  Pendleton,  together  with 
Colonel  Mason  of  Gunston,  who  is  here  to 
confer  with  the  gentlemen.  They  are  to  set 
off  this  afternoon,  sir ;  the  horses  to  be  around 
in  time  to  get  their  worships  across  the  river 
in  good  season  to  lie  at  Upper  Marlboro*  to- 
night." 

As  they  passed  on,  over  a  shady  carriage 
road,  dipping  now  into  fragrant  hollows  of  the 
woods,  rising  now  to  the  crest  of  a  hill  whence 
could  be  enjoyed  pleasant  glimpses  of  the 
house,  Hugh  Poythress  spoke  not  a  word. 
When  nearing  the  -  front  door  —  set  midway 
in  a  fa$ade  extended  on  either  side  by  wings, 
to  which  it  was  united  by  arcades  —  he  said, 
with  a  heavy  sigh :  — 

"  Hast  thought  what  this  means,  little 
daughter  ? " 

"  What,  papa  ?  "  asked  she. 

"  This  meeting  of  great  leaders  to  journey 
to  Philadelphia  ?  'Tis,  believe  me,  the  life, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          227 

liberty,  and  property  of  three  millions  of  happy 
people  they  are  hazarding.  I  would  that  I  had 
an  archangel's  trumpet  to  warn  them  from 
the  path  they  will  pursue." 

By  the  tremour  of  his  voice,  Matoaca  knew 
he  was  deeply  stirred.  An  answer  (that  might 
have  pained  him)  was  suppressed ;  and,  as  they 
now  halted,  she  slipped  down  upon  the  horse- 
block and  ran  away,  with  the  privilege  of  long 
intimacy,  to  find  for  herself  her  hostess. 
Colonel  Poythress,  delivering  Ajax  to  the  care 
of  his  own  groom,  more  deliberately  followed 
the  servant  who  came  out  to  receive  them. 
They  found  Madam  Washington  —  a  plump, 
sweet-faced  woman,  dressed  in  a  half-mourning 
sack  and  petticoat  of  lilac  and  white  chintz,  a 
gauze  cap  upon  her  soft,  brown  hair  —  stand- 
ing in  the  broad,  stone-paved  colonnade  at  the 
rear  of  the  house,  giving  directions  to  a  group 
of  negroes  who,  upon  the  appearance  of  their 
mistress'  guests,  scattered  in  different  direc- 
tions to  execute  her  behests.  Although  traces 
of  tears  remained  upon  the  lady's  cheeks,  she 
made  a  brave  effort  to  smile  as  if  in  customary 
spirits  in  giving  welcome  to  her  friends. 

"  Yes,  'tis  a  busy  day  for  me,"  she  said,  in- 
viting them  to  chairs  ranged  upon  the  flagging 
of  the  colonnade  —  where,  in  mild  weather,  it 
was  the  habit  of  Mount  Vernon  folk  to  sit,  in 
preference  to  indoors ;  "  since  I  arose  at  six, 
I  have  hardly  rested.  But  now  all  is  in  readi- 


228          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

ness,  and  I  am  glad  indeed  to  have  you  with 
me,  to  withdraw  my  thoughts  from  the  con- 
sideration of  my  husband's  going." 

"  I  would  with  all  my  heart  that  he  were 
not  leaving  you  on  such  a  mission,"  burst  out 
the  Colonel,  irrepressibly.  "  For  'tis  the  first 
time  I've  ever  seen  my  friend  George  Wash- 
ington set  forth  upon  a  public  errand  when  I 
could  not  wish  him  from  my  heart  God 
speed." 

"  And  'tis  the  first  time,"  returned  the  lady, 
with  spirit,  "  that  I  have  known  my  friend 
Hugh  Poythress  support  the  cause  of  evil- 
doing.  But  there,  there,  such  talk  does  not 
become  neighbours  as  old  and  intimate  as  we. 
If  what  my  husband  is  about  to  do  be  folly, 
then  he  will  be  first  to  admit  himself  in  fault. 
But  I  am  convinced  that  George  is  right,  now, 
as  always.  My  whole  heart  is  in  his  cause. 
He  stands  ready  for  any  sacrifice,  and  is  cheer- 
ful. But  I  foresee  darker  days  coming  out 
of  this,  than  we've  ever  known  in  Virginia. 
Alas !  wherever  I  turn,  there  are  clouds  around 
me;  but  George  knows  best,  and  I  must  be 
hopeful,  and  wait  for  his  return.  '  Surely, 
Colonel,  we  may  agree  to  let  this  make  no 
difference  between  us  and  ours  ! " 

Colonel  Poythress  lifted  to  his  lips  the  white 
hand  she  extended  to  him  with  a  charming 
grace,  while  May,  throwing  both  arms  around 
Madam  Washington's  neck,  gave  her  a  hearty 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          229 

hug  and  kiss.  The  gentlemen,  returning  at 
this  juncture  from  the  paddock  whither  Wash- 
ington had  conducted  them  for  a  farewell  look 
at  his  colts  and  two-year-olds,  strolled  across 
the  lawn  so  deeply  engaged  in  conversation  as 
not  to  notice  the  addition  to  their  party  upon 
the  colonnade. 

Henry,  walking  in  advance  with  Washing- 
ton, was  followed  by  Pendleton,  arm-in-arm 
with  Mason,  the  rear  brought  up  by  one  or 
two  gentlemen  of  the  neighbourhood,  who,  like 
Colonel  Poythress,  had  dropped  in  to  say 
farewell.  Of  the  four  famous  statesmen,  the 
one  who  appeared  to  be  freest  of  concern  re- 
garding the  result  of  their  present  action,  was 
undoubtedly  Patrick  Henry,  who  advanced 
almost  buoyantly  to  meet  the  great  issues  of 
the  hour.  His  eye  beamed  with  unclouded 
brilliancy ;  his  ardent  spirit  confessed  no  possi- 
bility of  failure.  George  Mason,  not  himself  a 
delegate,  was  in  full  sympathy  with  Henry's 
aggressive  schemes.  His  strong,  dark,  satirical 
face,  now  kindled  with  patriotic  enthusiasm, 
made  a  striking  contrast  to  the  fine,  thoughtful, 
and  intellectual  face  of  Pendleton,  v/hose  habit 
of  pondering  deeply  before  every  move  on  the 
political  chess-board  gave  him  an  air  of  with- 
drawal from  the  most  active  share  in  affairs. 

Washington,  upon  whom,  at  this  moment, 
weighed  heavily  the  thought  of  his  solitary 
wife,  the  abandonment  of  rural  interests,  of  the 


230          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

home  he  loved,  and,  most  of  all,  of  the  inevita- 
ble consequence  to  the  country  of  the  step  they 
were  about  to  take,  was  more  than  commonly 
grave.  When  the  three  delegates  to  the  first 
Continental  Congress  saw  awaiting  them  upon 
the  piazza  at  Mount  Vernon  a  leading  mem- 
ber of  the  faction  opposing  them  in  His 
Majesty's  Council,  it  was  certainly  indicative 
of  the  esteem  in  which  they  held  the  man,  that 
all  went  forward  together  to  greet  Poythress 
with  cordial  outstretched  hands. 

Their  talk,  sitting  afterwards  in  the  cool 
shadow  of  the  colonnade,  looking  across  the 
river  that  here  broadens  to  a  noble  width,  at 
the  red  shores  of  distant  Maryland,  was  at  first 
chiefly  of  matters  agricultural,  but  in  due  time 
came  around  to  the  topic  of  the  hour.  May, 
who,  her  hand  tucked  into  the  kind  clasp  of 
her  godfather,  sat  motionless  by  Washington, 
drank  in  with  avidity  the  arguments  for  the 
last  time  rehearsed  between  her  father  and  his 
opponents.  With  her  whole  heart,  she  rever- 
enced and  longed  to  sympathise  with  her  be- 
loved sire.  Once,  leaving  Washington,  she 
went  over  and  stood  beside  her  father's  chair, 
resting  her  arm  upon  his  shoulder,  and  there 
continued  to  listen.  In  this  battle  of  giants, 
the  girl  felt  herself  to  be  pitifully  small;  and, 
yet  under  its  influence,  deep  down  in  her  heart 
was  throbbing  into  life  something  destined  to 
grow,  to  lift  her  to  another  level  —  the  im- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          231 

mortal  love  of  liberty.  If  she  had  hesitated 
before,  she  knew  now.  If  she  had  heretofore 
trusted  her  father's  opinions,  she  loved  him  the 
better  because  now  convinced  that  he  was  in 
the  wrong,  and  could  not  see  it!  And  all  the 
while  her  thoughts  were  :  "  Rolfe  thought  that. 
Rolfe  believed  this.  Oh  !  if  Rolfe  were  but 
here  to  share  these  moments  with  me." 

"  I  have  done,"  said  Poythress,  finally. 
"  What  I  have  said  ends  my  effort  to  stay  a 
flood  I  believe  will  overwhelm  us.  What  you 
have  answered  proves  to  me  indubitably  that  a 
repetition  of  my  sentiments  will  avail  nothing. 
The  matter  goes  now  before  the  representative 
body  you  have  chosen.  Pray  God,  they  may 
show  wisdom  in  dealing  with  it.  But  not  you, 
Mr.  Henry,  who  would  charge  with  impetuos- 
ity up  the  Hill  Difficulty ;  nor  you,  Mr. 
Mason,  who  believe  that  a  majority  of  the 
community  has  a  right  to  abolish  the  divine 

right  of  kings ;  nor  you,  Mr.  Pendleton,  who 
•  •    •  i         i  1  •       • 

aim  to  encourage  timid  souls  to  combine  m  a 

general  united  opposition  ;  last  of  all,  you, 
Colonel  Washington,  who  have  publicly  offered 
yourself  to  avenge  the  Wrong  put  upon  Boston, 
—  none  of  you,  I  say,  can  deny  what  you  are 
going  to  bring  to  pass.  The  end  of  this 
movement  will  be  separation  from  the  mother- 
country  —  " 

"  God  forbid  !  "  replied  Washington,  with  an 
expression  of  sharp  pain. 


XI 


A  LITTLE  band  of  mounted  travellers 
wound  its  way  along  the  woodpath  — 
hardly  to  be  called  a  road  —  that 
severed  the  vast  monotony  of  forests  clothing 
the  west  flank  of  the  Alleghanies.  Another 
day  or  two  of  leisurely  riding  would  bring 
them  to  Deer  Lodge,  near  which  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  times  had  just  caused  to  be  erected 
a  new  stockade  fort,  for  use  in  an  emergency 
now  seeming  happily  remote.  For  the  Indians 
under  Logan,  who  had  been  roaming  the  border, 
working  out  their  scheme  of  vengeance  for  the 
disaster  at  Yellow  Creek,  were  now  understood 
to  have  set  off  to  join  the  confederated  tribes 
massing  to  meet  Lord  Dunmore  on  the  Ohio. 
As  the  lowlanders  penetrated  farther  into 
this  wildly  romantic  region,  they  were  fuller  of 
wonder  and  enjoyment.  The  healing  of  mind 
and  body  wrought  by  the  balm  of  the  woods 
upon  one  of  his  children,  the  boyish  delight  of 
the  other,  made  Hugh  Poythress  rejoice  that 
he  had  given  them  this  experience.  But  now, 
on  approaching  an  inn  in  the  wilderness,  re- 
nowned for  its  hot  cakes  swimming  in  maple- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          233 

syrup,  its  broiled  partridges  and  trout  cooked 
upon  wood-embers  by  a  local  celebrity,  styled 
"  Joey's  wife,"  a  great  disappointment  awaited 
Master  Hugh.  Here,  where  they  had  ex- 
pected to  pass  the  night,  they  found  heavy 
shutters  nailed  into  the  windows,  the  doors 
barred,  the  interior  unoccupied,  and  recently 
vacated.  No  token,  anywhere,  of  the  "  Lodg- 
ing, Diet,  Provender,  Pasturage,  and  Other 
Necessaries  "  exacted  by  Colonial  law  of  the  li- 
censed keeper  of  an  ordinary,  such  as  "Joey's" 
claimed  to  be.  Hughey's  face  dropped,  as  did 
those  of  the  younger  guide  and  the  negroes. 
Crogan,  the  stalwart  mountaineer  who  con- 
ducted their  expedition,  looked  also  blank, 
though  from  another  cause. 

"  'Tis  unaccountable,  your  worship,"  he  said 
in  an  undertone,  stepping  aside  with  his  em- 
ployer. "  Not  three  days  since,  I  had  word 
from  an  acquaintance  that  stopped  here  over- 
night, and  then  Joey's  was  in  full  swing ;  I 
can't  hide  from  you,  sir,  that  I'm  not  pleased 
with  his  movin'  off  so  sudden.  Not  a  word  to 
miss  and  master,  but  'twould  only  be  for  extry 
good  reasons  that  Joey  left  his  premises  like 
this." 

"  Good  God  !  "  said  Poythress,  "  had  we  not 
every  guarantee  —  "  The  words  choked  in  his 
throat. 

"  True  enough,  your  honour ;  and  my  own 
belief  is  that  the  redskins  are  far  enough  away. 


234          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

But  you  can't  be  sure,  sir,  and  'tis  my  business 
as  an  old  woodsman  to  listen  if  a  twig  cracks. 
Joey  has  a  long  head  in  such  matters;  though 
p'raps  'twas  a  false  alarm.  But  I  reckon  he's 
took  his  wife  to  Fort  Shannon ;  their  two  lone 
selves  could  do  nothing  here  in  case  of  an 
attack." 

Poythress,  hearing  his  children's  young  voices 
blending  in  light  talk  about  their  prospects  for 
the  night,  cursed  himself  for  having  brought 
them. 

"  There  is  nothing  for  us  but  to  break  open 
this  door  and  take  possession,"  he  said  briefly. 

"  If  I  could  strike  some  clew  to  the  reason 
for  Joey's  decamping,  I'd  be  better  satisfied," 
answered  the  guide,  meditating. 

"  Here  come  footsteps  in  the  woods ;  some 
one  singing  a  nasal  ditty,"  exclaimed  the 
Colonel. 

"  A  hunter,  I  hope,  and  our  supper  the  bet- 
ter for  venison  and  birds,"  answered  Crogan. 

This,  however,  was  no  bold  and  brawny 
huntsman,  but  a  lank,  sallow  man  clad  in  a 
brown  habit  girdled  about  the  waist,  from 
which  hung  a  hand-sickle,  carrying  across  his 
left  arm  a  large  bunch  of  herbs  and  simples. 

"  Halloo  to  you,  Brother  Ezekiel !  "  called 
the  guide.  "  I  might  have  known  'twas  one 
of  your  fraternity,  from  the  kill-joy  way  you 
tune  your  pipes.  Stop  a  bit,  and  give  some 
information  to  the  gentry." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          235 

"  'Tis  a  Dunkard,  sir,  or  f  Tunker,'  as  the 
country  people  calls  them.  A  sort  of  a  seventh- 
day  Baptist,  one  of  a  lot  that  came  over  from 
Pennsylvania  some  years  ago,  and  founded  a 
new  c  Ephrata '  not  far  from  here,  named  for 
the  head  colony  in  the  other  Province.  And 
a  good  farm  the  brethren  and  sisters  have  made 
out  of  their  settlement.  They're  sad  doleful 
critters,  sir,  and  no  friends  to  outsiders ;  but 
'tis  possible  I  can  get  out  of  Brother  Ezekiel 
the  news  o'  the  day,  and  so,  by  your  leave,  I'll 
go  forward,  and  talk  with  him." 

The  colloquy  between  Crogan  and  the  Tun- 
ker  lasting  longer  than  the  Colonel's  patience 
could  endure,  he  walked  over,  to  himself  inter- 
rogate the  newcomer. 

"  'Tis  as  I  supposed,  your  honour,"  said 
Crogan,  reluctantly,  "though  'twas  given  out, 
everywhere,  that  Logan  had  done  killing  and 
was  gone  home  to  c  tell  his  young  men  to  sit  in 
peace.'  This  man  says  Joey  Kent  and  his  wife 
got  word  by  a  Christian  Indian  that  used  to 
work  for  'em  —  a  fellow  they  nursed  when  he 
was  ill  —  that  a  party  of  Mingoes  was  planning 
to  swoop  down  on  these  parts  where  they  was 
not  expected.  Sort  o'  finishing  touch  to  their 
campaign,  sir.  Joey's  wife  was  badly  scart,  and 
yesterday  they  moved  up  to  Fort  Shannon.  If 
'twas  only  us,  your  worship,  I'd  say  stop  where 
we  are,  and  bivouac  in  Joey's  house.  But  as 
long  as  we've  a  lady  and  a  boy  in  the  party, 


236          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  sensible  thing  would  be  to  get  the  brother- 
hood at  Ephrata  to  give  us  shelter  for  the 
night.  No  chance  of  a  scare  there,  sir.  The 
savages  think  they're  crazy-like,  and  will  give 
'em  a  wide  berth." 

"An  excellent  idea,"  said  the  poor  Colonel, 
catching  at  a  straw. 

"  But,  the  trouble  is  the  Community  won't 
harbour  strangers,  and  Ezekiel  is  loath  to  hear 
of  taking  us  there.  I've  told  him  you'll  pay 
enough  to  buy  their  settlement  a  new  cow." 

"  Of  course,  of  course.  There  is  no  question 
of  pay  —  let  him  lead  us  thither,  without  delay." 

"  'Twill  be  a  cold  welcome,  sir.  But  I  think 
Brother  Ezekiel  can  make  it  straight  with  them, 
if  he  draws  a  movin'  pictur'  o'  that  cow,"  said 
Crogan,  his  cheerfulness  regained. 

The  man,  after  some  remonstrance,  consent- 
ing to  pilot  them,  the  party  got  again  under 
way. 

In  a  lovely  clearing  on  the  slope  of  a  moun- 
tain whose  summit  was  bathed  in  the  strong 
light  of  afternoon,  while  around  its  base  fell 
already  the  shadows  of  the  night,  stood  the 
Dunkard  settlement,  —  thrifty,  trim,  but  forbid- 
ding to  the  eye.  Before  one  of  two  long  and 
low  buildings  housing  the  men  and  women, 
who  lived  apart  save  on  the  occasions  when 
brought  together  by  a  communal  banquet, 
Brother  Ezekiel  stopped,  blowing  a  cow's  horn 
at  the  door.  In  answer  appeared  a  woman,  to 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          237 

whom,  after  some  parley,  he  consigned  Ma- 
toaca ;  the  men  in  similar  fashion  were  admitted 
to  the  brothers'  quarters. 

"  They'll  take  good  care  o'  little  miss,  sir," 
said  Crogan,  while  they  waited  to  get  in.  "  For 
though  them  old  maids  and  widders  are  as  cold 
as  fish,  they  live  honest  and  decent,  and  are 
good  housekeepers.  When  these  Tunkers  bap- 
tize, your  worship,  they  make  the  person  kneel 
down  on  the  edge  of  a  pond  or  stream,  and 
tumble  him  over  headlong,  so  as  his  head  goes 
under  water  first.  Folks  say  they're  rich,  but 
this  don't  look  like  it  overmuch.  And  I  mis- 
trust we're  goin'  to  get  nothing  but  roots  and 
yarbs  for  our  supper,  and  vegetable  messes ; 
for  their  rules  forbid  eatin'  flesh,  except  mutton 
at  the  love  feasts.  There  ain't  much  love  ap- 
parent, the  way  they're  keeping  us  shut  out 
here,  I'm  thinkin'." 

Poythress,  whose  whole  being  was  possessed 
with  gnawing  anxiety  for  his  children,  tried  to 
smile ;  but  the  distress  of  innocents  betrayed 
by  him  into  such  peril  was  too  strong.  The 
memory  of  his  wife,  in  their  happy,  safe  home, 
reproached  him  terribly.  Of  such  food  as  the 
Dunkards  gave  him,  he  ate  sparingly  and,  upon 
the  bench  serving  as  his  bed,  laid  awake  until 
sleep  took  pity  on  him  and  wiped  thought 
away. 

May  followed  her  portress-guide  into  a  long, 
bare  room,  where  a  number  of  silent  women 


238          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

sat  fashioning  garments  and  stockings  for  the 
Community.  On  her  appearance  among  the 
sisters  a  few  cold  glances  were  bestowed  upon 
her,  and  then,  left  to  herself  upon  a  split-bot- 
tomed chair,  she  tasted  the  full  charm  of  avoid- 
ance by  her  kind.  After  a  half-hour  of  isolated 
silence,  she  arose,  and,  picking  up  a  half-fin- 
ished yarn  stocking  with  needles  in  place  for 
work,  fell  to  knitting  busily. 

As  her  fingers  flew,  her  fancies  kept  pace 
with  them.  From  this  refrigerated  atmosphere, 
all  that  had  inspired  cheer  in  her  journey 
seemed  to  have  fled  away.  She  thought  of 
Rolfe  for  whom  she  had  never  ceased  to  mourn. 
As  her  dream  of  comforting  his  mother,  of 
mingling  her  tears  with  the  one  nearest  to  him, 
approached  realisation,  she  felt  anew  the  bitter 
sense  of  his  loss.  That  he  was  not  of  their 
blood,  had  been  kept  from  his  children  by 
Hugh  Poythress,  who  hesitated  to  cloud  their 
memory  of  one  whom  they  had  loved  as  their 
very  own.  The  interview  with  his  sister-in- 
law,  that,  panoplied  by  his  children,  he  had  re- 
solved to  seek,  might  be  left  to  settle  that. 
His  desire  was  to  push  to  the  utmost  his  offers 
of  help  to  his  brother's  widow,  let  poor  Rolfe 
be  whom  he  might.  And  May,  vaguely  un- 
derstanding that  her  father  felt  far  from  sure 
of  a  welcome  from  Rolfe's  mother,  began  now 
to  cherish  doubts  on  her  own  account.  She  was 
tired,  lonely,  dispirited ;  and  she  burst  into  tears. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          239 

At  this  demonstration,  there  was  a  swift 
crossing  of  a  space  of  clean  scrubbed  boards 
by  one  of  the  younger  sisters,  who,  with  shy 
reluctance,  patted  the  girl  upon  the  shoulder. 
May,  though  nothing  passed  between  them  in 
words,  presently  dried  her  eyes,  and  the  sister, 
beckoning  her  out,  led  the  way  into  a  cell  of 
the  Dunkard  dove-cote,  where,  upon  the  sleep- 
ing-bench with  its  billet  of  wood  for  a  pillow, 
had  been  thrown  a  truss  of  fresh  hay,  spread 
with  a  snowy  sheet  and  homespun  coverlid. 
Washing-apparatus,  with  a  bucket  of  sparkling 
water  from  the  spring,  made  up  the  fittings  of 
May's  little  bailiwick  ;  and  when  she  had  grate- 
fully refreshed  herself  and  removed  the  trace 
of  tears,  the  guardian  sister  reconducted  her  to 
the  refectory  where  the  others  had  now  as- 
sembled for  their  evening  repast. 

Cakes  of  Indian  meal ;  fresh  butter  ;  a  cream 
cheese ;  berries  from  the  mountain  side ;  new 
milk  ;  and  a  salad  of  piquant  herbs  —  made  up 
the  banquet,  served  with  exquisite  regard  for 
cleanliness.  During  the  silent  ceremonial,  May 
caught  several  glances  directed  toward  her,  that, 
although  restrained,  were  not  unfriendly ;  and 
when,  still  in  daylight,  their  flock  scattered  to 
repose,  and  the  girl,  throwing  herself  wearily 
upon  her  couch,  fell  asleep  as  she  touched  it, 
she  had  a  dim  vision  that  some  Presence  had 
paused  beside  her,  had  drawn  the  cover  over 
her  shoulders,  had  stood  looking  at  her  for  a 


240          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

little  while,  and  had  then  glided  away  into  the 
world  of  spirits  whence  it  came. 

Before  dawn,  the  sisterhood  was  stirring. 
The  sky  above  the  mountain  was  streaked  with 
a  deep  orange  warming  to  crimson,  when  the 
reunited  travellers  met  in  the  dewy  grass  out- 
side the  Community  doors. 

"  I  had  a  dream  that  mamma  was  there  and 
kissed  me,"  May  said,  exchanging  experiences 
with  Hughey.  "  And  oh  !  how  I  wanted  her 
when  I  awoke." 

"  Nobody  kissed  me,"  said  the  lad,  with  a 
droll  face.  "And  I  never  saw  people  so 
strange.  But,  sister,  the  food  was  good,  tho'  I 
dare  swear  I  shall  begin  to  feel  an  emptiness, 
before  we  have  gone  a  mile  or  two.  'Twas  the 
kind  of  eating  that  fills,  but  does  not  stay  by  a 
fellow's  inside." 

"  Hughey,"  she  asked,  riding  beside  her 
brother,  and  speaking  low,  "  do  you  know 
what  it  is  that  ails  papa  ?  He  is  so  changed 
since  yesterday.  But  that  he  is  not  wont  to  be 
out  of  temper,  I  should  think  one  of  us  had 
displeased  him." 

"'Tis  nothing  but  your  girl's  fancy,"  said 
the  lad,  growing  a  little  red,  and  edging  away 
from  her.  Before  going  to  bed  the  night  be- 
fore, he  had  heard  the  whole  situation  dis- 
cussed between  the  men,  and  it  had  added 
years  to  his  age  and  sense  of  responsibility. 

Their  method  of  travel  differed,  to-day,  from 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          241 

that  of  yesterday.  Crogan,  instead  of  keeping 
them  company,  enlivening  every  one  with  his 
quips  and  cranks  of  fun  and  border  anecdotes, 
rode  ahead,  quite  out  of  sight.  From  time  to 
time,  he  would  come  back  to  report,  and,  on 
each  occasion,  May  observed  that  her  father's 
face  lightened  of  the  cloud  that,  try  as  he 
might,  Hugh  Poythress  could  not  conceal  from 
her  loving  notice. 

As  the  day  progressed,  and  the  woods,  radi- 
ant in  early  autumn  dyes,  became  mellowed  to 
warmth  by  the  mounting  sun,  Hugh  Poythress1 
anxiety  had  indeed  relaxed  its  grip  on  him. 
Crogan's  expectation  that  they  would  arrive  by 
midday  without  hindrance  at  the  house  of 
Michael  Boyle  —  the  Irish  leader  of  a  small 
backwoods  settlement  —  seemed  likely  to  be 
realised.  Shortly  before  that  time,  while  they 
halted  for  refreshment  beside  a  babbling  rivu- 
let, the  guide  pricked  up  his  ears. 

"Horses,"  he  said,  "coming  behind  us,  and 
at  a  gallop." 

Hugh  Poythress,  knowing  not  what  this 
might  portend,  felt  his  heart  strike  within  him 
hard  and  fast.  The  matter  was  not  long  in 
declaring  itself.  Along  the  narrow  briary  road, 
passed,  at  a  breakneck  speed,  two  young  coun- 
trymen, straining  to  the  utmost  two  flying 
steeds,  horses  and  riders  bedecked  with  tawdry 
ribbons  and  rosettes. 

"  'Tis  only    the   race    for    the    bottle,    your 


242          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

honour,"  said  Crogan,  smiling  broadly,  as  he 
craned  his  neck  to  follow  the  contest,  and 
shouting  approval  of  the  rider  in  advance. 
"  Other  things  had  put  out  o'  my  head  that 
to-day  is  the  wedding  of  Micky  Boyle's  daugh- 
ter, Bridget;  the  one  they  call  the  belle  of  the 
Upper  Tract.  See,  missy,  those  mad  fellows 
are  the  groom's  men,  that  course  over  every 
obstacle  to  try  which  can  first  reach  the  bride's 
house,  and  win  the  prize  of  a  bottle  of  whiskey. 
Directly,  you  will  see  the  bridegroom  and  his 
party,  following ;  and  if  you've  a  mind  for 
backwoods  fun,  we  will  reach  Boyle's  in  time 
for  the  tying  of  the  knot.  'Tis  plain,  sir,"  he 
added,  falling  back  to  address  himself  to 
Colonel  Poythress'  ear,  "  all's  well  beyond,  since 
Michael  Boyle  is  a  man  that  keeps  his  eyes 
and  ears  always  about  him  for  alarms." 

Poythress  drew  a  breath  of  relief.  Standing 
beside  his  children  on  the  leaf  carpet  of  the 
woods,  they  watched  with  amusement  the  pro- 
gress of  a  pageant  unfamiliar  to  their  sight. 
Cavaliers  in  buckskin  hunting-shirts,  their  bare 
feet  covered  by  shoe-packs  or  moccasins,  their 
belts  garnished  with  knives  and  pistols,  escorted 
brown  and  buxom  dames  and  damsels,  in  form- 
less sacques  of  linsey-woolsey ;  she  who  wore 
calico  being  condemned  by  public  opinion  as 
outdressing  the  occasion,  and  trying  to  get  even 
with  the  bride.  The  heads  of  these  pioneer 
ladies  were  surmounted  by  ancient  hats,  tur- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          243 

bans,  and  caps,  brought  from  the  old  country 
by  themselves  or  their  progenitors,  and  kept 
inviolate  upon  cupboard  shelves,  for  great  occa- 
sions. Scattered  at  random  over  other  portions 
of  their  costume  were  old  brooches,  beads, 
feathers,  ribbons,  and  artificial  flowers. 

The  steeds  assembled  for  the  procession  were 
recent  graduates  of  the  plough,  rusty  and  un- 
certain in  gait  and  temper,  their  long  manes 
and  tails  knotted  with  burs,  ridden  with  or 
without  saddles,  with  rope  bridles,  and  switches 
cut  from  a  wayside  bush.  The  guests,  to  the 
number  of  twenty,  carried  each  an  offering  for 
the  bride,  these  gifts  including  bags  of  corn 
and  apples,  small  kegs  of  whiskey  or  cider,  a 
string  of  red  peppers,  a  home-made  broom,  a 
tick  full  of  geese-feathers,  and  a  live  pig. 

Twanging  upon  jews-harps,  singing,  shout- 
ing, firing  pistols  and  rifles,  the  hilarious  party 
clattered  ahead.  In  their  wake  rode  the  bride- 
groom, Simon  Browne,  a  meek-looking  man 
of  thirty-five,  accompanied  by  his  father  and 
mother,  a  stolid  old  Scotch-Irish  couple,  smok- 
ing corn-cob  pipes.  Our  travellers,  hospitably 
entreated  by  the  company,  fell  into  line  at  a 
little  distance  in  the  rear. 

At  Boyle's  —  a  cabin  marked  in  superior 
gentility  by  an  outside  coat  of  paint  and  a 
gourd-vine  climbing  over  the  front-door  —  the 
wedding  procession  halted  amid  much  jollity. 
Standing  at  the  gate  to  receive  them,  was  the 


244          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

red-headed  winner  of  the  bottle-race,  a  gawky 
youngster  dancing  and  flourishing  his  prize, 
from  which  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  were  re- 
quested, on  alighting,  to  take  a  dram  to  the 
bride's  health. 

Next  in  order  was  the  nuptial  ceremony, 
for  which  the  bride  and  her  mother  had  been 
for  days  making  preparation.  Within  doors, 
all  was  in  readiness.  Tallow  dips,  stuck  into 
many  bottles,  proclaimed  expectation  that  the 
revels  now  to  begin  would  continue  until  sun- 
rise of  next  day.  The  minister,  a  prim  Scotch- 
man, out  of  keeping  with  his  surroundings,  and 
the  fiddler,  a  jolly  negro,  being  on  hand,  there 
was  no  reason  for  delay.  The  blushing  bride, 
who  had  been  impatiently  peeping  through  the 
cracks  of  the  flooring  overhead,  descended  the 
ladder  leading  from  the  loft,  and  stood  re- 
vealed in  a  callimanco  gown  of  pumpkin-yellow 
sprinkled  with  large  red  spots,  and  a  necklace 
of  blue  beads.  The  ample  form  of  this  charmer, 
her  bursting  cherry  cheeks,  sloe-black  eyes  and 
hair,  and  mouth  like  a  drop  of  crimson  sealing- 
wax,  confirmed  her  right  of  preeminence  among 
the  fair  of  pioneer  society.  When  she  took  her 
place  before  the  minister,  the  bridegroom,  a 
little  in  arrears  about  stepping  forward,  was 
reprimanded  by  her,  audibly,  with  the  informa- 
tion that  he'd  better  hurry  up,  if  he  didn't 
want  the  meat  to  be  cooked  to  a  cinder ;  and 
at  once  the  meek  Simon  surrendered  his  small 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          245 

individuality  in  the  character  of  Miss  Biddy 
Boyle's  husband. 

The  knot  tied,  everybody  was  invited  to  step 
out  of  doors,  where  under  the  trees  at  the  back 
of  the  house  was  spread  the  wedding-feast  on 
a  large  slab  of  timber  hewn  from  its  parent 
trunk  with  a  broad-axe,  its  legs,  four  sticks  set 
in  auger  holes.  To  this,  the  host  and  hostess, 
aided  by  the  groom's  parents  and  other  inti- 
mates, carried  out  from  the  house  kitchen  a 
large  supply  of  meats,  game,  vegetables,  bread, 
and  pies.  The  plates  were  of  wood  or  pewter ; 
the  cups,  in  which  cider,  root-beer,  and  whiskey 
were  bountifully  served,  of  horn ;  and,  when- 
ever a  carving-knife  was  lacking,  its  place  was 
supplied  by  the  scalping-knife  (for  obvious 
reasons  considered  indispensable  to  a  beau's 
outfit  in  pioneer  society),  whipped  from  a 
sheath  at  the  owner's  belt.  Next,  while  the 
bride  sat  beside  her  husband  at  the  head  of 
the  board,  the  groom's  men  crawling  on  all 
fours,  beneath  it,  vied  with  each  other  to  see 
who  should  snatch  the  slipper  from  her  foot 
—  he  who  succeeded,  to  be  rewarded  by  her 
hand  in  the  first  dance ! 

As  the  contents  of  the  kegs  of  drinkables 
decreased,  a  hubbub  of  noisy  jollity  ensued. 
May,  who  had  soon  enough  of  looking  on, 
withdrew  from  the  feast,  and  strayed  among 
the  old-fashioned  posies  of  a  little  garden-patch 
in  front,  where  coxcomb,  sweet-william,  lark- 


246          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

spur,  and  bachelor's-buttons  made  a  patriotic 
attempt  to  adapt  themselves  to  the  soil  of  the 
wilderness. 

Here  her  attention  was  arrested  by  a  new 
arrival,  whom  she  took  to  be  a  belated  wed- 
ding guest ;  a  stalwart,  red-faced  woman,  dressed 
half  in  man's  attire,  who,  pulling  up  her  reek- 
ing pony  at  the  hitching-post,  gruffly  addressed 
the  young  lady  —  to  her  surprise  —  by  name. 

"  Do  you  want  me  ? "  asked  the  girl,  recoil- 
ing a  little  from  one  she  believed  to  be  under 
ardent  influence. 

"  I  do,  honey,  and  no  mistake.  I  know  you 
better  than  you  think  for,  and  I  come  here  a- 
purpose  to  see  your  father ;  so  just  you  hurry 
and  find  him  for  me,  and  don't  let  the  grass 
grow  under  your  feet,  a-goin'." 

"  Might  I  trouble  you  to  tell  me  why  ?  "  said 
May,  colouring  at  this  rude  address. 

"  'Tis  a  matter  o'  life  and  death,  child.  The 
party  of  Logan's  braves  that  was  said  to  ha' 
left  the  country  was  hiding,  and  ha'  started  back 
for  the  Upper  Tract.  And  unless  you  folks 
gits  into  Fort  Shannon  to-night,  you  may  be 
cut  off  without  a  place  to  shelter  in  —  and 
that's  why." 

The  blood  streamed  out  of  Matoaca's  face, 
leaving  it  chalk-white. 

"There  now,  missy,  he  didn't  want  you%to 
be  scart,  particular,"  added  the  woman,  repent- 
ing of  her  hasty  news.  "  But  there  ain't  no 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          247 

time  for  manners,  and  I  can  see  you're  one  of 
the  good-plucked  kind ;  so  just  keep  up  your 
courage,  and  you'll  git  safe  into  the  fort  to- 
night, and  to-morrow  there'll  be  them  as  is 
looking  out  for  you,  to  come  with  volunteers 
to  your  relief — " 

While  May  wondered  who  had  wished  her 
not  to  be  alarmed,  Hugh  Poythress,  his  son, 
and  Crogan,  the  guide,  leaving  the  boisterous 
scene  at  the  banquet,  to  discuss  the  resumption 
of  their  line  of  march,  came  upon  May  and  her 
strange  companion. 

"What!  Mad  Ann?"  exclaimed  Crogan, 
with  familiar  jocularity.  "  Come  to  the  wed- 
dih'  after  time,  ain't  you  ?  But  'tis  all  one  to 
you,  so  long  as  the  whiskey  keg  holds  out 
—  eh?" 

"If  you  can't  give  me, my  right  name  o' 
Mistress  Bailey,  John  Crogan,"  said  the 
woman,  angrily,  "  I'll  settle  your  score  as  I 
did  Nick  Green's  at  Sandy  Creek,  last  Whit- 
suntide, when  you  stood  by,  grinning,  and 
picked  up  what  I  left  o'  him.  Colonel  Poy- 
thress, here's  a  letter  for  your  worship  I  was 
to  give  into  no  hands  but  yours ;  and,  when 
you've  read  it,  p'raps  you'll  tell  little  missy 
here  whether  Ann  Bailey's  to  be  believed  or 


not.'1 


While  the  Colonel,  with  astonishment,  joy, 
and  anxiety  succeeding  each  other  in  his  coun- 
tenance, read  the  letter,  Ann  set  about  rubbing 


248          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

down  her  horse,  whistling  "  Rule  Britannia " 
as  she  worked. 

"You  will  be  brave,  my  darling,"  said  her 
father,  addressing  May,  at  length.  "  'Tis  a 
serious  crisis,  but  by  God's  help  we  will 
weather  it.  Just  now,  there  is  not  a  moment 
to  lose,  since  all  daylight  is  precious,  and  we 
know  not  how  we  may  find  the  fords  between 
here  and  Fort  Shannon.  But,  be  you  and 
Hughey  only  what  I  count  upon,  'twill  give 
me  courage  to  forget  that  I  have  led  my  chil- 
dren face  to  face  with  such  a  danger." 

"  You  can  trust  me,  papa,"  she  said,  looking 
him  firmly  in  the  eyes,  and  her  father's  spirit 
rose.  In  a  few  moments  they  were  again  en 
route,  Ann  Bailey  having  decided  to  stop  for 
her  dinner,  and  take  her  chances  with  the 
rest. 

Upon  the  wedding  guests,  the  tidings  fell 
like  a  thunder-clap.  What  a  diffusion  of  the 
happy  little  company !  What  huddling  in 
groups,  women  clinging  to  their  husbands, 
sweethearts  clasping  hands,  in  the  first  moment 
of  shocked  uncertainty  !  Then,  the  fact  grasped 
and  accepted,  the  cool  pioneers  went  about 
meeting  the  situation  as  they  and  their  fathers 
had  done  various  times  before.  Some,  mount- 
ing, galloped  away  to  collect  their  children  and 
set  their  homes  in  a  state  of  defence ;  some  took 
the  road  to  the  fort,  following  Colonel  Poy- 
thress.  The  owner  of  the  house  was  satisfied 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          249 

to  put  his  substantial  domicile  into  condition 
for  a  siege.  In  the  midst  of  the  tumult  was 
heard  the  voice  of  the  late  Miss  Bridget  Boyle, 
addressing  her  new  lord  :  — 

"  An*  it's  me  ye're  asking  to  go  away  to  the 
fort  is  it.  Si  Browne  ?  A  pretty  infair  'twould 
be  for  the  folks  to  talk  about !  Go  yerself,  if 
ye  want  to.  Me  and  me  father  and  mother, 
an'  as  many  neighbours  as  likes  it,  stays  right 
here ! " 

"  Children,"  said  Hugh  Poythress,  as,  toward 
evening,  they  neared  the  fort  in  safety,  "  what 
if  I  tell  you  the  wonderful  good  news  that 
came  to  me  in  the  note  I  got  by  Ann  Bailey  ? 
Will  it  cheer  you  after  this  great  strain  and 
help  you  to  bear  what's  coming,  I  wonder  ? " 

Matoaca,  divining,  and  yet  afraid  to  believe, 
gazed  at  her  father  with  rapt,  ecstatic  eyes. 

"  Rolfe's  alive,"  shouted  Hughey. 

"  Yes,  alive  and  well,  come  out  of  the  wil- 
derness and  hastening  to  our  relief  with  volun- 
teers whom  he  is  collecting  on  his  way.  May, 
dearest,  good  news  hits  you  harder  than  bad, 
'twould  seem  to  me.  What  white  cheeks  you 
have,  little  one !  Courage !  we're  almost 
there." 

"  I  can  bear  anything,  now,  father,"  said  the 
girl,  whose  heart,  indeed,  beat  a  reveille  to  her 
flagging  strength  and  spirits. 

"  But  not  a  thing  must  I  convey  of  this  to 


250         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

his  poor  mother,  till  he  is  able  to  present  him- 
self before  her  safe  and  sound.  That  is  the 
charge  of  his  loving  loyal  heart,  and  we  must 
respect  it." 

May  could  not  answer  ! 


XII 

THERE  was  no  sleep  for  any  of  the  fifteen 
men  and  five-and-twenty  non-combatants 
gathered  that  September  night  inside  the 
new  fort,  meant  as  a  place  of  refuge  for  the 
families    living  in   this    remote    and    exposed 
neighbourhood,  and  now  to  be  tested  by  a  siege 
from   Indians   skilled  in   such   warfare,  under 
Logan,  whose    name   alone   carried  with  it  a 
sense  of  terror. 

None  too  soon  had  the  Poythress  party 
gained  the,  shelter  of  this  primitive  stronghold, 
consisting  of  cabins,  block-houses,  and  a  well  of 
water,  enclosed  by  a  stockade.  The  cabins, 
provided  for  the  accommodation  of  families, 
with  outer  walls  twelve  feet  high,  and  steep 
roofs  sloping  inward,  formed  one  side  of  the 
fort.  The  block-houses,  from  which  the  men 
fought  through  loop-holes  provided  for  the 
purpose,  were  placed  at  the  angles  of  the  en- 
closure, and  projected  beyond  the  walls  of  the 
cabins  and  stockade.  Their  upper  stories, 
overhanging  the  lower  ones,  had  openings  in 
the  floor  through  which  the  inmates  might  keep 
at  bay  savages  attempting  to  make  lodgment 

251 


252         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

underneath  the  walls;  and  the  stout  stockade 
was  finished  with  a  double  folding-gate.  The 
whole  structure,  built  of  heavy  logs,  was  almost 
bullet-proof.  Although  just  finished,  and  not 
fully  equipped  with  ammunition,  the  little  gar- 
rison of  refugees  and  volunteers  who  now 
occupied  it  felt  confident  of  its  strength  to 
resist  an  ordinary  siege.  The  size  of  Logan's 
party  was  reckoned  to  be  small,  and  the  men  to 
be  counted  upon  as  defenders  of  the  fort  were 
all  quick  of  eye,  fearless  of  nature,  and  habitu- 
ated to  alarms. 

Among  those  brought  by  chance  together  in 
this  critical  moment  were  the  proprietors  .of 
Deer  Lodge  —  a  forest  domicile  not  a  stone's 
throw  from  the  gates  of  the  fortress  —  Mrs. 
Poythress,  the  widow,  and  her  twin  brothers, 
the  eccentric  Randolphs,  who  were,  if  disin- 
clined to  speech  with  their  fellow-mortals,  ex- 
cellent marksmen,  cool  and  clear-headed  in 
such  emergencies. 

No  experience  that  had  fallen  to  our  good 
Colonel's  lot  was  more  surprising  to  him  than 
the  implacable  demeanour  of  his  sister-in-law, 
who  refused  to  see  his  proffered  hand,  and 
turned  away  when  he  addressed  her.  May 
and  her  brother  fared  better  at  Mrs.  Poy- 
thress' hands.  She  even  offered  them  a  share 
of  the  cabin  assigned  to  her,  which  the  vicinity 
of  her  hastily  abandoned  home  had  enabled  her 
to  provide  with  comforts  lacking  to  the  others. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          253 

But  there  was  no  unbending  of  her  chilly 
manner,  even  to  these  two  whom  she  appeared 
inclined  to  favour.  May,  abashed  and  wounded, 
went  into  her  own  shell,  restraining  all  that 
she  would  fain  have  lavished  of  sympathy  and 
loving-kindness  upon  her  dear  Rolfe's  parent. 
When,  in  the  excitement  of  their  installation 
at  the  fort,  she  found  time  to  whisper  to  her 
father  her  grief  over  these  conditions,  she  was 
puzzled  by  his  answer. 

"  Ah,  well !  little  daughter,  if  I  have  failed,  I 
have  failed.  I  bear  her  no  grudge.  This  is 
not  a  time  to  flaunt  poor  human  weaknesses. 
Could  I  tell  that  bitter  woman  what  we  know, 
to  make  her  happier,  'twould  be  the  only  re- 
venge I'd  ask.  But  I  must  keep  faith  with 
Rolfe,  and  trust  that,  by  God's  mercy,  he  will 
soon  safely  reach  us." 

Under  the  instructions  of  the  shrewd  and 
experienced  Crogan,  who  had  organised  the 
volunteers  in  the  fort  into  fighting  shape, 
Colonel  Poythress  now  took  charge  of  the  de- 
fence. From  the  appearance  of  a  couple  of 
redskins  seen  dodging  in  and  out  among  the 
trees  and  houses  of  the  small  deserted  settle- 
ment hard  by,  helping  themselves  to  whatever 
took  their  fancy,  it  was  evident  that  the  enemy 
was  lurking  near  at  hand,  awaiting  a  favourable 
moment  for  attack.  All  firearms  had  been 
brought  inside  the  fort,  and  in  those  days,  no 
frontiersman  ever  parted  from  his  rifle  and 


254          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

minor  equipments ;  so  they  were  fairly  pro- 
vided for  resistance,  and,  in  apportioning  rifles, 
tomahawks,  scalping-knives,  and  spears  to  the 
men,  with  pistols  to  the  women,  to  whom  was 
set  the  task  of  running  bullets  in  moulds  and 
cutting  patches,  and  in  stationing  his  men  at 
the  loop-holes  in  the  best  position  for  defence, 
Colonel  Poythress  passed  the  heavy  hours  be- 
fore daybreak. 

At  sunrise  there  was  a  yell  from  the  woods. 
The  women,  who  had  been  carrying  around  to 
the  garrison  food  hastily  prepared,  shivered  and 
looked  into  each  other's  eyes.  Each  read  in 
the  other  a  determination  to  meet  it  as  bravely 
as  might  be,  and  at  the  worst  to  use  her  pistol 
turned  upon  herself. 

Into  the  rattle  of  gun-fire,  the  din  of  savage 
cries  that  were  to  make  hideous  half  its  hours, 
the  beautiful  day  plunged  at  the  outset. 
Swarming  from  behind  trees  and  bushes,  the 
savages  dashed  with  incredible  rapidity  upon 
the  fort,  those  in  the  front  rank  attempting  to 
plant  their  rifles  against  the  loop-holes;  but 
the  attack  went  for  naught.  Four  Indians  fell 
in  the  hail  of  balls  that  was  returned,  the  others 
howling  in  dismay,  but  stopping  to  pick  up  their 
dead  or  disabled  comrades  before  rushing  back 
into  retreat.  They  had  evidently  not  counted 
upon  an  organised  force  within  the  fort,  and 
the  surprise  of  their  reception  kept  them  silent 
for  some  time. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          255 

The  next  onslaught  —  that  of  a  close  column 
of  Indians,  carrying  a  heavy  timber,  with  which 
they  advanced  at  a  run  upon  the  gates  —  gave 
Crogan  the  opportunity  for  which  his  fingers 
had  been  itching,  —  to  touch  off  a  jaunty  little 
French  cannon  planted  on  a  platform  in  the 
centre  of  the  fort,  though  its  balls  (all  save  one 
of  a  few  used  in  experiment)  were  still  some- 
where on  their  way  on  the  backs  of  pack- 
mules.  The  single  charge  did  an  amount  of 
execution  worthy  of  a  full  supply.  In  moral 
effect,  as  honest  Crogan  said,  it  was  worth  its 
weight  in  gold  —  besides  cutting  aslant  through 
the  array  of  savages  to  leave  a  wall  of  living  on 
either  side  of  a  trail  of  death. 

While  the  redmen  were  again  on  the  retreat 
to  ambuscade,  and  the  fort,  generally,  was  going 
off  its  head  with  pride  and  satisfaction,  Crogan 
breathed  into  his  chief's  ear :  — 

"  Hard  luck,  your  worship.  The  magazine 
is  empty  !  That  barrel  we  took  to  hold  gun- 
powder is  full  o'  raw  saltpetre ;  and  the  Lord 
knows  what  we're  goin'  to  do,  after  we've  used 
what's  in  the  block-houses.  From  what  the 
fellows  that  live  in  the  cabins  say,  there's  a 
supply  on  the  way,  but  it  might's  well  be  a 
supply  o'  weddin'  cake,  for  all  the  good  we'll 
get  from  it.  One  of  them  queer  old  gents  that 
lives  in  the  widow's  house  over  yonder  says 
he  left  'bout  a  dozen  pounds  o'  powder  in  a 
keg  hid  in  that  shed,  behind  the  door.  But 


256          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Lord  save  us,  sir,  'twould  be  facin'  death  for 
any  man  to  venture  after  it,  with  them  red- 
skins on  the  prowl." 

"  We  must  do  without,  then,"  said  Hugh 
Poythress,  tightening  his  lips.  "  So  far,  all's 
in  our  favour,  and  if  we  hold  out  till  reinforce- 
ments come,  'twill  be  better  than  I  dared  ex- 
pect. And  mind,  Crogan,  of  all  things,  keep 
up  the  heart  of  our  garrison.  Tell  them  relief 
is  sure  to  come,  as  soon  as  a  fit  number  can  be 
assembled.  If  delayed  a  bit,  'tis  only  because 
my  nephew  has  not  got  the  men  he  needs." 

"If  Cap'n  Rolfe  said  he  was  comin',  he'll  be 
here,"  said  the  Lieutenant.  "  There  ain't  any- 
body in  the  fort,  but  what's  interested  in  his 
risin'  from  the  dead,  this  way,  and  in  keepin' 
the  secret  from  that  poor  mother  o'  his,  that's 
better  inside  than  she  'pears  upon  the  bark." 

"  Let  no  one  who  would  lose  heart  by  it, 
know  about  our  powder  scrape,"  added  the 
Colonel. 

"  Lord,  sir,  trust  me.  But  that  wouldn't  be 
your  little  missy,  Colonel.  The  men  are  all 
buzzing  over  how  she's  got  the  spirit  of  a  sol- 
dier. And  there's  the  young  master,  sir,  if 
you'd  please  give  him  orders  to  keep  in  the 
rear ;  for  I  can't  take  it  on  me  to  answer  for 
the  lad.  Why,  sir,  in  the  first  charge,  that 
twelve-year-old  picked  off  his  man  like  any 


veteran." 


"  Did  he  ?     God  bl—  Devil  fetch   the    ras- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          257 

cal !  "  said  Hughey's  father,  swallowing  a  lump 
of  pride.  "  No,  Crogan,  we  have  need  of  him, 
and  he  must  keep  his  place  like  the  rest." 

Matoaca,  meanwhile,  was  the  warm  pulse  of 
the  garrison.  Now  in  the  cabins,  heartening 
the  wretched,  terrified  women  and  children  and 
patriarchs,  again  in  the  block-houses  waiting 
upon  the  men  who  dared  not  forsake  the  loop- 
holes, her  spirit  brightened  the  interminable 
day. 

What  damage  had  been  done  to  the  out- 
works of  the  fort  was  repaired  from  within. 
They  had  food  enough  and,  but  for  the  fatigue, 
the  condition  of  the  little  force  was  much  as  it 
had  been  at  the  outset  of  the  siege.  But  the 
strain  of  suspense  had  begun  to  show.  The 
hint  of  a  short  supply  of  powder  had  somehow 
crept  around;  and  the  fall  of  night  upon  a 
wooded  landscape  bristling  with  hostile  gun- 
barrels  made  the  cry  of  the  birds  in  the  forest 
seem  doubly  dispiriting.  Matoaca,  on  her 
rounds  with  hot  coffee,  and  portions  of  veni- 
son steak  served  upon  bits  of  hoe-cake, 
stopped  at  the  post  where  her  brother  had 
held  his  ground  all  day,  rifle  in  hand. 

"  Art  tired,  dearest  ? "  she  said  caressingly, 
laying  her  hand  on  his. 

"Nay,  I  am  not  a  girl,"  said  Hughey,  edg- 
ing away  from  her.  cc  For  goodness*  sake,  give 
me  a  full  share  of  food,  for  starved  am  I,  since 
midday.  Ah  !  was  ever  coffee  good  as  this,  I 


258          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

wonder  ?  Sister,  I'm  sorry  I  was  cross.  Dost 
know  something  ?  Crogan  said  miss  was  not 
to  be  told,  but  I  said  pooh !  He  did  not 
know  you.  We  are  in  a  bad  way  for  powder. 
If  we  fight  to-night,  by  to-morrow  morning, 
there'll  be  none  left !  I've  got  such  an  idea, 
May.  If  I  could  get  into  yonder  shed  —  see 
where  I'm  pointing — behind  that  door  hid 
under  an  old  wash-tub  is  a  little  keg  of 
powder  that  I  could  carry  easily  —  'tis  not  far 
—  I  could  run  fast  —  if  I  thought  papa  would 
not  be  vexed  with  me  —  " 

The  girl,  externally  calm,  did  not  answer 
him  at  once. 

"  Sister,  you  hear  me  ?  You  wouldn't  tell 
if  I  went,  and  now  is  the  best  time  —  when  it 
is  growing  dusk  —  " 

"  The  orders  are,  not  a  man  shall  leave  his 
post,"  she  said,  with  a  tremble  of  excitement  in 
her  voice. 

"  I  know,"  said  Hughey,  holding  his  head 
erect.  "  And  I  couldn't  really,  unless  you'd 
take  my  rifle.  You,  that  love  shooting  so  —  " 
he  added  coaxingly. 

"  I  could  fire,"  answered  she ;  "  but  oh  ! 
Hughey,  did  I  hit  any  one,  I'd  never  forgive 
myself." 

"  Silly  girl  !  "  said  her  brother. 

"Yes,  dear,  I'm  a  silly  girl,  I  know  —  and 
therefore  you  shouldn't  ask  me.  I'll  load  for 
you,  all  you  like,  but  shoot  live  men  —  no, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          259 

don't  speak  of  it.  So  you  see,  Hughey,  you 
dare  not  leave  your  post." 

"  Not  unless  you  replace  me,"  was  his  pout- 
ing answer.  And,  in  a  little  while,  arose  anew 
the  now  familiar  blood-curdling  whoop  that 
sent  every  rifle  again  to  its  death-dealing  work. 
Soon  there  was  no  chance  for  any  one  to  stir 
from  shelter.  By  the  lurid  flashes  from  the 
guns,  by  the  soft  light  of  stars,  the  fight  went 
on  all  night.  The  stout  resistance  of  the  be- 
sieged, giving  proof  to  the  besiegers  of  a  power 
not  counted  on,  threw  the  Indians  back  upon 
strategy,  their  devices  keeping  the  garrison  upon 
a  strain  more  dreadful  than  the  heat  of  combat. 

When  another  day  broke,  the  little  band  in 
the  fort  found  themselves,  save  for  a  few  tri- 
fling casualties,  not  much  the  worse  for  the 
night  of  horror.  It  was  something  to  view 
again  the  fair  face  of  nature;  and  the  hope  of 
relief  from  volunteers  they  knew  to  have  rallied 
to  their  aid,  sprang  high  in  their  breasts. 

After  a  long  interval,  a  party  of  the  enemy 
again  approached,  surrounding  a  new  engine  of 
destruction  devised  in  imitation  of  the  cannon, 
their  now  silent  enemy  of  the  previous  day. 
A  hollowed  log,  bound  around  with  iron  chains 
and  heavily  charged  with  stones  and  powder, 
escorted  by  two  chiefs  carrying  lighted  torches, 
was  directed  toward  the  gate  of  the  stockade. 
With  taunting  cries,  and  gleeful  caperings,  the 
band  drew  nearer,  when  a  torch,  slipping  from 


260          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  bearer's  hand  upon  the  log,  exploded  it 
instantly,  scattering  death  and  consternation 
among  them.  At  this,  a  shout  of  joy  went  up 
from  the  block-houses,  and  the  Indians,  in  dis- 
may, beat  a  precipitate  retreat. 

During  the  ensuing  intermission  of  hostili- 
ties, the  men  snatched  at  a  chance  for  rest, 
some  of  them  dropping  asleep  as  their  bodies 
fell  upon  the  ground;  the  women  now  sup- 
plied their  places  at  the  rifles,  and  the  puncheon 
floors  of  the  block-houses  were  soon  strewn  with 
smoke-stained  figures,  chained  in  the  slumber  of 
utter  physical  fatigue. 

When  Colonel  Poythress,  who  left  Crogan  at 
the  lookout,  went  to  search  for  his  children,  he 
found  the  pair  nestled  together  on  the  floor,  — 
Helen  Poythress,  a  grim,  grey  statue,  at  the 
loop-hole,  holding  the  rifle  dropped  from  the 
tired  boy's  hand.  Kneeling  down  to  kiss  them, 
he  did  not  disturb  the  lad,  but  Matoaca  opened 
her  eyes  quickly  and  started  upon  her  feet. 

"  I  was  not  asleep,  papa,"  she  said,  clinging 
to  him  in  a  fond  embrace ;  "  though  I  have 
slept  quite  enough  to  freshen  me.  I  was  think- 
ing—  hard.  Tell  me  the  truth,  father.  Is  our 
powder  gone  ? " 

"Almost,  my  darling.  If  help  does  not 
come  to  us  from  outside,  —  and  I  think  it  can- 
not tarry  much  longer, — we  must  find  some 
means  to  get  the  powder  left  in  yonder  house." 

"  Who  will  go  for  it,  father  ?  " 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          261 

"  God  knows.  I  had  thought  of  the  men 
drawing  lots,  though  Crogan  says  we  had  best 
call  for  a  volunteer.  But  there,  do  not  fret 
thyself,  little  soldier  mine.  Put  thy  arms 
around  my  neck  and  give  me  a  good  hug,  and 
so  watch  to  awake  thy  brother  when  'tis  time/* 

"  Kiss  me  once  more,  father." 

Straining  her  to  his  heart,  breathing  a  bless- 
ing above  her  childish  head,  Hugh  Poythress 
hurried  away.  For  those  two,  he  was  ready  to 
live  over  again  the  stress  of  his  late  endeavour. 
Helen  Poythress,  staring  through  the  loop- 
hole, took  no  heed  of  what  went  on  at  her 
back. 

When,  on  regaining  his  point  of  observation, 
Poythress  looked  forth  into  the  new  day,  the 
trees,  standing  ringed  in  their  autumnal  liveries 
around  an  amphitheatre  of  cleared  ground,  were 
illumined  by  the  risen  sun.  Over  in  the  group 
of  cabins  surrounding  Deer  Lodge,  there  was 
no  sign  of  movement.  Not  a  sound  broke  the 
stillness  of  the  dewy  matin  hour.  Behind  the 
door,  less  than  a  hundred  yards  distant  from 
the  gate  of  the  stockade,  lay  salvation  for  those 
in  the  fort. 

Crogan  —  whose  little,  grey  eyes  twinkled 
with  eagerness  to  make  the  venture  to  secure 
the  keg  —  dared  not  repeat  his  offer  to  do  so, 
to  the  chief.  Poythress  had  answered  that  to 
lose  him  would  be  like  parting  his  right  hand 
from  his  wrist. 


262  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  I  suppose  we  must/'  groaned  the  Colonel, 
with  whom  it  went  hard  to  consign  to  almost 
certain  death  any  one  of  the  plucky  fellows  who 
had  borne  with  him  the  heat  and  burden  of  the 
fray.  "  But  our  reinforcements,  Crogan.  At 
any  minute,  my  nephew  may  arrive." 

"  And,  at  any  minute,  them  red  devils  may 
get  up  on  us  again." 

"  Then  there  is  no  help  for  it.  Powder  we 
must  have." 

"  With  it,  sir,  we  can  hold  out  as  long  again. 
Without  it  —  ha  !  Our  men  are  stirring  ;  shall 
I  call  for  a  volunteer  ?  " 

"  Let  no  man  go  who  has  wife  or  children, 
mind  you.  Heaven  knows  it  sickens  me  to 
send  a  brave  man  out  over  that  ground  to  be 
riddled  by  savage  bullets,  or  caught  and  put 
to  the  torture  —  Great  God  in  heaven  —  !" 

Crogan  saw  his  chief,  whose  gaze  continually 
scanned  the  space  between  them  and  the  border 
of  the  woods,  turn  white  and  stagger  like  one 
stricken  unto  death.  The  voice  that  issued 
from  his  lips  seemed  to  belong  to  some  one 
else.  While  they  had  been  talking,  neither 
man  had  noticed  the  shooting  back  of  the 
heavy  bolts  inside  the  stockade  gates,  or  the 
swift  passage,  through  the  opening  thus  secured, 
of  a  lithe  and  agile  form.  When  they  saw  her, 
Matoaca  was  running  at  full  speed  toward  the 
little  house  behind  the  door  of  which  lay  the 
gunpowder.  Those  who  within  the  fort  fol- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          263 

lowed  her  course  between  rapid  heart-beats, 
marvelled  not  less  at  her  splendid  daring,  than 
at  the  fact  that  the  Indians  in  ambush  gave  no 
sign  of  having  noticed  her. 

Hugh  Poythress,  totally  unnerved,  fell  back 
upon  a  bench  and,  covering  his  face  with  both 
hands,  sobbed  like  a  child. 

"  Oh  !  my  lamb,  my  brave  baby,"  he  groaned. 
"  How  shall  I  answer  to  thy  mother  for  thee, 
precious  one  ? " 

Crogan,  who  had  taken  the  Colonel's  place, 
now  saw  the  girl,  reaching  her  goal  undisturbed, 
disappear  inside  the  door,  and  presently  reap- 
pear, clasping  in  her  slender  arms  the  object 
of  their  hopes.  At  this,  the  borderer's  stout 
heart  quivered  in  his  great  frame,  his  eyes  were 
dim  with  mist. 

"  'Tis  the  end,  God  pity  her,"  he  said  to  him- 
self. "  They'll  never  let  the  child  get  back  here 
with  that- — but,  as  long  as  I  can  send  a  bullet 
true,  she  sha'n't  fall  alive  into  their  hands." 

Another  moment  of  desperate  anxiety ;  it 
was  incredible  that,  so  far,  not  a  ball  had  been 
sent  singing  after  the  intrepid  girl. 

And  now,  again,  the  flying  form  was  seen  to 
cross  the  deadly  open  space.  She  had  nearly 
reached  the  barricade,  behind  which  eager  hands 
were  hot  to  draw  her  in,  when,  with  a  shriek 
of  triumph,  a  young  brave,  hideously  streaked 
with  war-paint,  darted  out  of  the  underwood  in 
pursuit  of  her,  flourishing  his  tomahawk. 


264          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Crogan  clinched  his  teeth,  asked  God  to  for- 
give him,  and  took  aim  at  her  heart.  His  own 
heart  was  bursting  with  rage  at  the  deed  they 
were  forcing  him  to  do.  Woe  to  the  redskin 
who  should  be  at  his  mercy  after  this  ! 

But  it  was  not  written  in  the  book  of  Fate 
that  May  Poythress  should  die  at  honest  Cro- 
gan's  hand.  Another  bedaubed  figure,  issuing 
swiftly  from  the  thicket,  overhauled  her  pur- 
suer, tripping  and  throwing  him  to  the  ground, 
then  dragged  him  into  the  woods. 

And  an  instant  later,  cheer  after  cheer  of 
pent-up  emotion  arose  from  the  fort.  Their 
saviour,  carrying  her  prize  in  safety,  reached  the 
gate,  was  admitted,  relieved  of  her  precious  bur- 
den, and,  amid  acclamations  of  joy,  and  delight, 
and  gratitude,  borne  to  her  father's  arms. 

Nestled  to  the  breast  that  a  moment  since 
had  seemed  frozen  with  despair,  panting  a  lit- 
tle, yet  self-possessed,  she  made  no  attempt 
to  speak.  But  those  who  lavished  upon  her 
tears,  thanks,  kisses,  and  blessings,  noticed  that 
her  eye  sought  his  as  if  to  deprecate  the  sorrow 
she  had  caused. 

Last  to  come  to  her  was  Helen  Poythress, 
her  stern  face  transfigured  with  deepest  feeling. 
With  streaming  eyes,  she  knelt  beside  father 
and  child,  and  whispered  :  — 

"  Ah  !  thank  God,  who  has  made  you  break 
up  the  fountains  of  my  deep  !  Too  late  I  see 
what  my  Rolfe,  that  I  worshipped,  lavished  his 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          265 

love  upon !  How  could  I  eat  my  heart  in 
jealousy  of  such  as  you  ?  If  we  survive  to- 
day, you  shall  see  that  I  can  be  grateful,  for 
myself  as  well  as  for  my  poor  dead  boy." 

A  shot  from  the  thicket  announced  the  re- 
newal of  hostilities.  Hugh  Poythress,  like  a 
man  waked  out  of  sleep,  sprang  to  his  feet, 
consigning  his  child  to  Helen. 

"If  we  survive ! "  he  cried  irrepressibly, 
"'twill  be  because  your  boy's  living,  and  on 
his  way  to  us,  with  volunteers.  'Twas  his  own 
wish  that  you  should  not  know  it  until  he  can 
reach  you  in  safety ;  but  alive  he  is,  and  well, 
after  a  fever  following  his  wound,  and  had  set 
out  in  search  of  you,  when  he  heard  of  the 
threatened  attack  upon  Fort  Shannon.  So 
now,  comfort  each  other,  you  two,  that  love 
the  boy;  for, if  I  do  not  mistake,  he'll  be  here 
erelong." 

So  saying,  the  Colonel  became  again  the  cool, 
quiet  leader,  who  throughout  the  siege  had  in- 
spired courage  and  patience  in  all  who  looked 
at  him.  May  and  Helen,  who  could  only  meet 
in  a  long  silent  kiss  of  thankfulness  for  the 
blessing  thus  revealed,  hastened  off  to  their 
duties  in  the  fort. 

May's  first  care  was  for  her  brother,  whom 
she  found  aroused,  but  dropping  with  fatigue. 

"  Oh  !  sister !  "  the  lad  exclaimed  wearily, 
"what  you  did  was  grand  for  a  girl,  though 
you  might  ha'  left  it  for  me,  that  first  thought 


266          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

of  it.  When  we  get  home  I'll  give  you  my 
white  mice,  and  the  hawk's  nest  —  and  you 
shall  have  your  pick  of  Fan's  next  puppies. 
My  heart  jumped  with  joy  for  you,  May. 
There's  not  another  fellow's  sister  that  would 
have  done  the  same." 

A  great  yawn  opened  Hughey's  artless  coun- 
tenance, and  stopped  his  speech.  He  would 
have  given  all  the  world,  just  then,  to  lie  down 
and  be  tucked  in  bed  by  his  mamma.  But 
while  the  conflict  raged  anew,  till  the  men's 
rifles  grew  hot  with  frequent  firing,  so  that  the 
women  had  to  cool  them  off  before  loading 
again,  the  boy  remained  at  his  post,  a  little 
demon  of  blackness  and  fierce  resolve.  Not 
in  vain  mingled  in  his  veins  and  Matoaca's  two 
currents  of  heroic  blood, —  one  from  the  far- 
away savage  ancestress  who  bequeathed  to  her 
native  country  the  story  of  a  valiant  act ;  the 
other,  from  a  line  of  English  soldiers,  ending 
in  the  progenitor  who  as  a  lad  of  thirteen  had 
helped  to  push  Peterborough's  guns  up  the 
steep  ascent  of  Monjuick,  in  the  face  of  Spanish 
fire. 

The  Indians,  to  recoup  themselves  for  the 
generosity  of  their  chief  in  sparing  the  girl, 
had  now  resolved  at  all  risks  to  carry  the  for- 
tress by  assault.  The  trunk  of  a  tree,  used  as 
a  battering-ram,  had  demolished  one  of  the  bas- 
tions, and,  though  slowly,  the  garrison  began  to 
feel  itself  worsted.  The  enemy,  seeing  their 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          267 

advantage,  held  off  for  a  parley.  At  the  win- 
dow of  the  house  nearest  the  stockade  appeared 
an  English-speaking  Indian,  recognised  as  a 
near  associate  and  lieutenant  of  the  chief  Logan, 
waving  a  flag  of  truce. 

"We  think  you  have  fought  enough,"  said 
the  man.  "  We  did  not  kill  your  squaw,  because 
she  is  fit  to  be  a  brave.  But  you  had  better 
give  up  now.  If  you  give  up  now,  we  will  not 
massacre  nor  burn.  Will  you  give  up  now?" 

"  What  do  the  men  say  ?  "  asked  Poythress, 
who  had  despatched  Crogan  to  ascertain  the 
wishes  of  his  force. 

"They  ain't  so  very  trustful,  sir,"  was  the 
answer.  "And  if 'tis  just  the  same  to  you, 
they  think  they'd  rather  fight." 

Poythress  smiled,  well  pleased. 

"Then  do  you  answer  him,  Crogan.  Tell 
them  we  prefer  to  fight." 

He  knew  this  might  be  their  death  warrant. 
The  long  gloomy  night  was  now  to  end  in 
a  darker  day.  A  last  struggle  of  despairing 
valour,  and  they  might  be  overcome. 

Poythress  thought  of  the  invalids  and  chil- 
dren crouched  in  the  cabins,  half-mad  with 
fear;  of  the  noble  women  who  had  shared 
with  their  husbands  and  brothers  and  lovers 
the  rack  of  the  terrible  siege;  last  of  all,  he 
trusted  himself  to  think  of  his  own  two,  and 
this  was  like  the  rending  apart  of  his  limbs 
and  body,  of  flesh  and  bones. 


268          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

But  there  was  no  alternative.  Better  death 
in  battle  than  the  other  fate  awaiting  them. 

At  the  moment  when  Crogan  appeared  above 
the  palisade  to  give  the  answer  of  the  fort, 
away  in  the  woods  to  the  eastward  sounded  a 
long,  deep,  peculiar  note.  Every  ear  in  the 
garrison  was  strained  to  hear  it  repeated. 
Then,  Helen  Poythress  cried  out  in  a  thrill- 
ing voice :  — 

"That  is  my  son's  call.  I  should  know  it 
in  a  thousand.  He  will  save  us !  Oh  !  my 
son." 

And  soon,  with  gallant  clash  of  steel,  and 
thunder  of  horses*  hoofs,  a  relieving  party  of 
thirty  volunteers  galloped  up  before  the  stock- 
ade gates,  thrown  wide  at  the  moment  of  their 
coming.  The  Indians,  taken  by  surprise,  and 
fearing  a  larger  force  to  follow,  scattered  towards 
the  woods.  Those  who  were  near  fired  wildly, 
and,  amid  a  rain  of  bullets  bedded  in  the 
wood-work  of  the  palisade,  every  horseman 
rode  safely  in,  save  Rolfe,  who  came  last,  and 
was  intercepted.  Him,  identified  with  delight 
as  a  former  and  formidable  foe,  the  savages 
made  no  attempt  to  shoot.  Having  aban- 
doned the  siege  of  the  fort,  their  present  idea 
was  to  surround  and  capture  the  famous  Cap- 
tain, and,  holding  him  as  a  hostage,  make  their 
own  terms  with  the  garrison  or  else  — 

Isolated,  set  upon  at  every  turn,  Rolfe's  one 
hope  of  escape  lay  in  his  horse,  and,  turning 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         269 

suddenly,  he  rode  at  full  speed  in  the  direction 
by  which  he  had  come  with  the  relief.  Pound- 
ing the  ground  with  mighty  hoof  strokes,  with 
snorting  nostrils  and  eyes  of  flame,  Diabolus 
flew  like  a  whirlwind,  parting  one  line  of  Ind- 
ians who,  having  never  seen  a  monster  like 
unto  him,  broke  and  let  him  pass  unhurt  be- 
tween them.  But  Rolfe  had  reckoned  without 
his  host.  Headed  off  by  others  from  the  track 
he  sought,  he  dashed  aside  blindly,  the  horse 
stopping  on  the  verge  of  a  precipitous  and 
deep  descent  to  Shannon  Creek.  And  when 
the  Captain  looked  around,  he  saw  his  retreat 
on  every  side  barred  by  the  savages. 

Now  again,  by  a  strange  decree  of  fate,  was 
Logan's  enemy  brought  to  bay  by  him,  in  the 
same  fashion  as  before.  The  rider  was  on 
the  brink  of  an  almost  perpendicular  cliff — a 
broken  and  bush-grown  slope,  ending,  far  be- 
low, in  a  babbling  mountain  river.  And  here, 
emerging  from  the  line  of  grinning,  painted 
faces  in  Rolfe' s  rear,  came  the  chieftain  who 
had  once  given  him  the  life  he  now  meant  to 
take  according  to  the  strictest  letter  of  his  fore- 
fathers' law.  Logan  wore  no  longer  his  look 
of  majestic  manhood.  Drink  and  the  lust  of 
blood  had  wrought  in  him  a  degrading  change. 
His  red-veined  eyes  shone  with  vengeful  lustre 
upon  his  prisoner. 

"  So  you  not  dead,  after  all,  Captain,"  he  said^ 
chuckling.  "  That  is  well  for  me.  When  I 


270          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

met  you  before,  my  blood  was  cold.  Now  it  is 
hot  with  much  killing.  But  I  do  not  kill  you, 
now.  Your  people  in  Fort  Shannon  owe  me 
a  score  the  death  of  one  man  would  not  settle. 
I  remember  your  fine  leap  over  yonder.  Pity 
no  chance  for  you  to  do  some  jumping  here. 
This  time,  the  hill  too  high  above  the  creek. 
By  and  by,  maybe  we  get  you  to  jump  the  way 
we  want  to  make  you  go." 

The  dreadful  menace  of  the  drunken  chief- 
tain's speech  left  Rolfe  no  alternative.  With- 
out hesitation,  he  sat  back  in  his  saddle,  took 
his  rifle  into  his  right  hand,  and  spurred  Di- 
abolus  over  the  edge  of  the  abyss,  to  attempt 
what  seemed  impossible.  One  instant,  the 
noble  horse  reared  remonstrant,  neighed,  and 
swerved  away  from  the  precipice.  The  next, 
heading  straight,  he  plunged  downward,  crash- 
ing amid  loose  rocks  and  breaking  branches  ! 

The  story  of  this  achievement  is  a  part  of 
border  history.  How,  by  a  miracle,  the  Cap- 
tain and  his  steed,  after  reaching  the  bottom  of 
the  slope,  and  dashing  into  the  waters  of  the 
creek,  made  their  escape  amid  whistling  bullets 
through  the  woods  of  the  shore  opposite,  has 
been  told  to  admiring  generations  succeeding 
that  in  which  the  feat  was  triumphantly  ac- 
complished. 

The  chroniclers  do  not  tell  how  our  hero, 
following  some  delays  and  hindrances,  found 
his  way  back  again  to  Deer  Lodge,  —  now  re- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         271 

stored  to  its  ancient  peace  by  the  final  retreat 
of  the  Indians  to  the  Ohio, — where  there  was 
glad  reunion  with  those  who  loved  and  had 
watched  for  him  ! 

But  Rolfe  had  not  yet  done  with  active 
service  —  the  time  to  rest,  to  tell  his  tale  to 
eager  ears,  to  hear  theirs  in  return,  and  of 
May's  valiant  act  that  had  sent  her  name 
ringing  through  the  countryside  linked  with 
his  in  praises  —  and  he  was  off  again  in  pur- 
suit of  his  general,  whose  army  had  opened 
a  way  directly  across  the  mountains  to  the 
Kanawha. 


XIII 

ON  the  eve  of  departure  from  the  scene  of 
her  memorable  experience,  May  Poythress 
wandered  out  alone  to  the  fort,  where  the 
space  within  the  enclosure,  so  lately  trampled 
into  by  horses  and  sown  with  Indian  bullets, 
was  already  springing  with-  fresh  grass  and 
flowers.  Around  the  platform  of  the  little 
cannon,  a  mass  of  goldenrod  had  come  into 
bloom,  and  a  blue-jay  had  perched  upon  the 
gun.  May,  displacing  him,  sat  looking  at  the 
feast  of  splendour  in  the  trees,  and  thinking  of 
many  things. 

Here  she  had  brought  her  childhood,  to 
leave  it  forever  behind.  Here  she  had  brought 
great  sorrow,  that  had  fled  away  !  And  of  all 
the  tremendous  events  of  the  two  nights  and 
a  day  of  the  Indian  siege,  she  dwelt  most  upon 
Rolfe's  return  —  the  new  terror  of  seeing  him 
cut  off — and  the  greatest  of  joys  when  he 
was  again  restored  to  them. 

To  this  spot,  he  had  come  with  her,  to  hear 
her  own  tale  of  the  attack ;  to  tell  of  his  long 
illness  in  Ann  Bailey's  hut  in  the  woods,  so 
hidden  from  sight  by  greenery  and  moss  that 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          273 

it  was  unsuspected  by  a  passer-by  ;  of  the  nurse 
he  had  found  in  grateful  Peggy  Baker,  the  poor 
heart-broken  girl,  rescued  by  him  from  the 
Indians,  and  picked  up  by  Ann  wandering  foot- 
sore and  half  distraught ;  of  his  charge  to  his 
mother  to  take  Peggy  into  her  home  and  care 
for  her  ;  of  his  recovery  of  Diabolus  stolen 
from  the  countryman's  stable  where  he  had 
left  him,  who,  refusing  utterly  to  be  backed 
by  the  thieves,  was  turned  loose  in  the  woods 
to  stray  where  Ann  had  found  him.  These 
details  discussed,  they  had  come  to  touch  on  a 
matter  more  delicate  —  Rolfe's  feeling  upon 
making  the  discovery  of  his  humble  origin. 

In  those  days,  when  between  gentry  and 
commoner  a  great  gulf  was  fixed,  it  is  not  to 
be  denied  this  had  caused  the  young  man  a 
pang.  Not  so  much  for  the  relinquishment  of 
a  claim  to  aristocratic  blood.  That  meant  little 
to  the  free  rover  he  meant  to  be  henceforth. 
But  he  did  not  willingly  abandon  his  kinship 
with  Hugh  Poythress,  whom  he  loved  and 
honoured ;  with  his  adopted  mother  and  the 
eccentric  uncles,  whose  one  human  interest  had 
been  in  helping  to  rear  and  educate  him  ;  and 
with  the  dear  people  at  Vue  de  TEau.  Though 
it  had  not  failed  to  occur  to  him  that  his  lowly 
birth  would  put  a  final  barrier  between  him 
and  Betty,  there  was  not  in  this  idea  quite 
the  former  smart.  During  his  illness,  Betty's 
bright  image  had  faded  a  little,  and  the  thought 


274          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

of  her  as  another  man's  wife  had  ceased  to 
rouse  him  to  impotent  wrath.  In  the  stress 
and  strain  of  later  events, —  of  mortal  peril  and 
rude  physical  exertion,  —  his  fancy  had  taken 
hold  of  a  soldier's  life  as  the  only  one  worth 
living.  He  burned  to  be  away  in  the  wake 
of  his  general,  finishing  the  punishment  of 
their  red  foes ;  and,  after  that,  there  were  the 
ranks  of  the  new  Sons  of  Liberty  to  join,  with 
a  chance  to  serve  his  country  as  he  had  served 
his  Province.  What  May  had  told  him  of  the 
conversation  between  the  delegates  to  the  Con- 
tinental Congress  upon  the  porch  at  Mount 
Vernon,  stirred  the  profoundest  feelings  of  his 
heart  in  this  regard.  And  May,  to  whom  the 
young  man's  confidences  had  been  poured  out 
in  full  measure,  had  listened  to  all  with  the 
same  clear  and  steadfast  gaze  of  understanding. 
In  spite  of  her  youth  and  vivacity,  he  had  ever 
found  in  her  that  divinest  gift  of  sympathy 
that  now  seemed  richer  and  fuller  than  before. 
She  was  the  ideal  sister  of  his  dreams,  as  well 
as  the  most  glorious  little  heroine  of  his  ac- 
quaintance. 

"  So  you  see,  cousin,  what  I  have  yet  to  do," 
he  had  ended,  tossing  the  long  locks  from  his 
thin  face.  "  Since  I've  no  right  to  the  name  I 
bear,  'tis  doubly  my  duty  to  make  one  for 
myself." 

"  To  us  you  would  always  be  the  same," 
Matoaca  had  said  in  almost  a  whisper. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion        275 

"  To  you  and  my  Uncle  Poythress,  for  so  I 
must  call  him  still,  and  to  Hughey  —  dear  lad  ! 
But  what  of  your  mother,  and  —  Betty  ?  " 

"  Betty !  "  cried  her  sister,  colouring  deeply. 
"  I  think  no  one  understands  her  save  myself, 
Rolfe.  Betty  plays  with  things  others  hold 
sacred,  maybe ;  but  she  is  loving  and,  once  her 
affections  fixed,  could  be  tender.  To  me,  she 
is  dearer  and  lovelier  because  just  now  —  " 

"  What,  just  now  ?  " 

"There  is  a  misunderstanding,"  May  said, 
crimson  because  forced  to  be  evasive. 

"  Nay,  if  you  mean  about  Lord  Avenel, 
Hughey  gave  me  a  hint  of  it." 

"  Hughey  is  a  tell-tale,"  cried  the  girl. 
"  Besides,  'tis  all  at  an  end.  She  will  never 
see  him  again,  if  papa  can  help  it." 

"  Betty  has  temptations  those  less  rare  and 
beautiful  escape,"  said  Rolfe,  loyally.  "  Once, 
she  was  in  the  clouds  so  high  above  me,  I  could 
see  no  imperfections.  When  she  came  into  the 
room,  'twas  like  Aurora  rising.  While  I  live, 
there  will  never  be  any  one  to  me  what  Betty 
was,  —  but  I  see,  now,  what  I  was  too  blind  to 
recognise  before,  that  the  man  who  wins  her 
must  have  a  place  to  offer  her.  If,  in  this 
topsy-turvy  world,  the  monstrous  chance  should 
come  to  me,  that  I  —  plain  Alan  McDuffie, 
they  tell  me,  though  I  shall  never  drop  the 
name  I  hold — were  raised  to  rank  and  fortune, 
I  might  hope  she  could  forget  my  plain  looks, 


276         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

my  slim  personal  pretensions.  But  till  then  — 
which  means  never,  May  —  I'll  be  no  woman's 
suitor.  I  shall  woo  Fortune  in  camp,  and  live 
for  my  country;  and,  whatever  comes,  I'll  think 
of  thee,  little  coz,  as  the  best  friend  and  coun- 
sellor a  poor  devil  ever  had." 

May,  seated  upon  the  cannon,  went  over 
again  every  word  of  this  pregnant  interview. 
Rolfe,  upon  Diabolus,  had  ridden  away  to  a 
conflict  with  the  red  savages  beside  which  the 
preliminary  skirmishes  of  the  summer  were  to 
be  of  little  account.  A  great  void  was  in  her 
heart,  that  even  the  soothing  of  Helen  Poy- 
thress'  changed  manner  could  not  cause  her  to 
forget.  Truth  to  tell,  little  May  had  passed 
along  the  latter  part  of  the  path  of  maidenhood 
to  womanhood  so  rapidly,  that  now,  when  cer- 
tain emotions  sprang  full  fledged  into  being  in 
her  heart,  she  knew  not  what  they  meant.  Her 
one  feeling  was  to  hide  all,  to  suffer  anything, 
rather  than  betray  herself  to  mortal  ken. 

To  love  one  who  not  only  loved  not  her, 
but  loved  another,  —  that  was  a  sin  of  treachery 
and  forwardness.  If  all  these  people  who  praised 
and  glorified  their  little  heroine  could  look  into 
her  real  self,  and  see  what  was  there  concealed, 
how  they  would  turn  away  from  her  in  scorn 
and  mockery  !  For  May  —  through  environ- 
ment of  Virginian  custom,  through  the  nature 
of  her  reading,  through  the  habits  of  her  iso- 
lated life  —  had  the  high-stepping,  old  chivalric 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          277 

notion  of  a  woman  sitting  upon  a  pedestal,  be- 
fore which  the  wooer  must  bend  his  knee  to 
sue  repeatedly  ere  she  could  yield  and  confer 
her  finger-tips  upon  the  despondent  lover.  In 
her  lexicon  there  were  no  such  words  as  spon- 
taneity of  passion  in  a  girl.  And,  therefore,  she 
looked  upon  her  innocent  devotion  to  Rolfe, 
fostered  by  his  absence,  danger,  and  heroism, 
as  an  abnormal  growth  of  sentiment  to  be  rep- 
rehended by  all  persons  under  better  self-con- 
trol than  she. 

And  yet  Crogan,  whom  the  Colonel's  prom- 
ises of  bounty  had  enriched,  the  other  partici- 
pants of  the  fearful  experience  of  the  siege,  who, 
with  the  sang-froid  of  those  hardened  by  alarms, 
had  scattered  again  to  their  several  domiciles, 
her  father,  Hughey,  Aunt  Poythress,  —  every- 
body, —  continued  to  bewilder  her  with  praise 
and  kindness.  With  outsiders,  she  was  the 
heroine  of  the  day.  They  had  told  her  that 
whenever,  after  this,  her  name  was  mentioned 
in  her  native  Province,  'twould  be  with  honours 
to  the  bravest  of  the  brave.  Might  not  that 
atone  for  the  indiscretion  of  her  unmaidenly 
casting  of  her  heart  before  one  who  had  neither 
asked  it  nor  desired  it  ? 

Poor  little  May,  sadly  torn  by  these  conflict- 
ing thoughts,  sat  upon  her  perch,  sorting  the 
large  bunch  of  goldenrod  she  had  picked  from 
the  clearing.  In  this  attitude,  she  was  surprised 
by  her  father,  accompanied  by  the  very  last 


278          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

person  either  of  them  could  have  expected  to 
see  at  Deer  Lodge,  —  the  wandering  Earl,  their 
cousin. 

Avenel  —  his  progress  arrested  by  the  out- 
break of  Logan's  men  —  had  remained  in  hid- 
ing in  a  farmhouse  at  a  safe  distance  from  the 
raid.  His  explanation  of  his  arrival  in  this 
out-of-the-way  spot  was  ineffectual,  —  consist- 
ing, as  it  did,  of  a  lame  plea  that  the  family 
name  had  led  him  to  hope  for  a  welcome,  and 
that,  after  the  society  of  rude  mountaineers,  he 
wished  to  treat  himself  to  a  glimpse  of  civilisation. 

But  the  positive  refusal  of  Helen  Poythress 
to  receive  him,  on  the  ground  that  she  never 
conferred  with  strangers ;  the  cool  greeting  cf 
the  Colonel,  who,  however,  felt  that  he  would 
be  the  better  for  an  explanation  bound  to  come; 
and  the  uncouth  reception  accorded  him  by  the 
twin  bachelors  —  had  enraged  and  disgusted  the 
traveller.  So  full  was  he  of  his  late  apprehen- 
sions and  discomforts,  so  continually  harping 
upon  personal  annoyance,  that  Hugh  Poythress 
had  much  ado  to  treat  him  with  plain  civility. 
After  partaking  of  a  meal,  unprovided  with 
which  no  vagrant  would  have  been  allowed  to 
leave  Deer  Lodge,  my  Lord  had  been  invited 
by  his  kinsman  to  stroll  over  to  the  fort,  where 
they  could  talk  undisturbed. 

May,  springing  to  the  ground,  and  curtsey- 
ing, was  about  to  withdraw,  when  her  father 
stopped  her. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         279 

"  Remain  here,  my  child,"  he  said  with  au- 
thority. "  What  I  must  say  to  Lord  Avenel 
may  be  the  better  for  a  witness.  I  had  hoped 
for  this  opportunity  —  though  later.  My  im- 
pression that  Lord  Avenel  had  accompanied 
the  Governor  on  his  journey  to  Fort  Pitt  had, 
indeed,  caused  me  to  fear  I  should  be  disap- 
pointed in  intercepting  him  en  route" 

"I  have  naught  to  do  with  Lord  Dunmore's 
movements,  and  I  confess  I  do  not  understand  a 
manner  almost  threatening.  Colonel  Poythress, 
I  presume,  cannot  have  found  cause  to  change 
his  opinion  of  one  to  whom  he  lately  accorded 
his  daughter's  hand,"  said  Avenel,  ill  at  ease. 

"You  jump  to  conclusions.  But  then  that 
saves  explanation,"  answered  the  straightforward 
Colonel.  "The  long  and  short  of  it  is,  my 
Lord,  that  circumstances  compel  me  not  only 
to  cancel  an  engagement  formed  far  too  hastily, 
but  to  tell  you  that  my  daughter  —  deeply  to 
blame,  I  own  —  mistook  her  feelings  in  making 
it.  Under  no  possible  circumstances  can  she 
become  your  wife." 

"  Then  the  skies  have  rained  a  richer  suitor 
into  her  lap,"  cried  Avenel,  with  a  snarl  of 
anger.  "A  month  ago,  you  were  all  keen 
enough  to  bag  me  for  the  girl." 

"  I  pass  over  your  discourtesy,"  said  Poy- 
thress, whose  face  was  dyed  in  manly  crimson. 
"  Allowance  must  be  made  for  one  under  your 
circumstances." 


280          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  It  is  some  work  of  that  cur  of  a  nephew 
of  mine,"  went  on  the  furious  man.  "  I  should 
think  that  between  the  word  of  a  jealous  jacka- 
napes like  that,  and  a  man  of  my  position,  even 
a  Colonial  boor  might  —  " 

"You  have  gone  too  far,"  said  Poythress, 
interrupting.  "  You  are  a  coward,  and  perhaps 
worse.  It  had  not  been  my  intention,  until  better 
assured  of  the  particulars  of  it  from  GeofFry 
Flower,  to  speak  of  another  matter,  coming  to 
me  through  my  housekeeper,  Judith  Carnes." 

At  this  name,  the  Earl's  face  expressed  a 
painful  degree  of  panic.  His  jaw  dropped,  his 
bluster  left  him.  He  seemed  suddenly  to  have 
decreased  in  stature.  With  a  string  of  oaths, 
he  declared  there  was  a  conspiracy  between 
Poythress  and  Flower  to  ruin  him.  That  the 
lying  jade  in  question  was  no  better  than  dirt 
under  his  feet ;  and  that,  in  any  case,  he  defied 
them  all  to  prove  whatever  cock-and-bull  story 
the  creature  had  patched  up  to  his  discredit. 

"  Prove  it,  I  say ;  prove  it ! "  he  ended,  with 
white  lips,  but  having  gained  a  sort  of  courage 
as  he  went  on  uncontradicted. 

"  That  will  I  do,  without  the  shadow  of  a 
doubt,  the  moment  I  get  speech  with  GeofFry 
Flower,"  answered  Poythress,  who  had  never 
seemed  to  his  daughter  more  admirable  than 
when  he  stood  quietly  face  to  face  with  this 
gibbering,  fretful  foe. 

"  Then  you  are  dependent  on  your  fellow- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          281 

conspirator,"  shouted  Avenel.  <c  Ha !  'Tis 
just  what  I  thought.  You  know  nothing. 
You  are  thrusting  in  the  dark/' 

"Then  you  deny  all  treachery  to  your 
brother's  child  ? "  queried  Poythress. 

What  the  Earl  answered  was  a  clear  exposi- 
tion of  the  man's  real  self.  From  fear  to  rage, 
from  rage  to  bravado,  then  back  again  to  terror, 
he  passed  so  rapidly  that  Poythness  needed  no 
further  confirmation  of  his  guilt. 

Taking  the  arm  of  his  frightened  daughter 
and  turning  upon  his  heel,  he  strode  con- 
temptuously away. 

Had  Avenel  but  left  well  alone !  It  had 
been  coward  conscience  that  led  him  to  this 
fall,  following  a  series  of  ups  and  downs  of  an 
almost  pitiful  experience. 

During  long  years,  his  secret  had  remained 
stowed  away  in  a  pigeonhole  in  the  desk  of  his 
library  at  Castle  Avenel.  So  much  of  it,  at 
least,  as  was  revealed  by  the  letter  of  the  master 
of  the  sailing-ship,  Victory,  that  in  the  year 
1754,  took  out  of  Bristol  Channel  a  fine  cargo 
of  white  servants  for  the  Virginian  market. 
The  name  of  the  people  by  whom  the  lad, 
Alan  Carnes,  had  been  adopted,  the  locality  to 
which  they  were  bound,  and  a  subsequent  letter 
reporting  that  the  whole  McDuffie  family  was 
said  to  have  perished  in  an  Indian  massacre, 
were  also  on  file  in  the  same  receptacle. 


282          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

In  the  course  of  time,  Avenel  believed  he 
had  ceased  to  think  of  his  wrong-doing.  But, 
like  a  dead  tooth  that  begins  to  throb  and 
then  will  not  be  stayed,  it  had  one  day  asserted 
itself,  since  which  he  had  had  no  peace. 

The  dreadful  death  of  his  neglected  wife  and 
son,  of  a  disease  that  sent  Avenel  shuddering 
away  from  them  into  the  farthest  corner  of  the 
Castle,  had  been  followed  by  a  period  of  re- 
morse, making  his  nights  a  terror,  his  days  a 
curse.  His  fancy  that  his  dead  came  back  to 
reproach  him  for  having  done  that  which  kept 
them  from  resting  in  their  graves,  became  an 
obsession.  His  shattered  nerves  threatened 
something  worse. 

The  supreme  fear,  that  of  being  found  out, 
led  him  to  devise  the  scheme  —  alas !  for 
Betty's  vanity!  —  of  marrying  Hugh  Poy- 
thress*  daughter,  in  order  to  protect  himself 
from  possible  investigations  in  the  future,  in 
that  quarter.  After  Atra  Cura,  having  once 
discovered  so  promising  a  victim,  had  seated 
herself  upon  his  croup,  not  to  be  dislodged, 
hypochondria  and  nervous  strain  had  made  of 
him  so  exasperating  a  patient,  that  his  doctors 
wisely  combined  to  ship  him  oversea. 

Upon  arrival  in  Williamsburg,  his  first  act 
was  to  put  the  search  for  any  information  con- 
cerning the  lost  McDuffies  into  the  hands  of  a 
lawyer,  a  dryasdust  antiquarian,  who,  accus- 
tomed to  spend  his  days  in  groping  amid  grave- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          283 

yard  mould,  had  no  surprise  to  accord  to  the 
Earl's  investigation.  The  fact  of  the  massacre 
of  Angus  McDuffie  and  his  wife  Sarah,  having 
been  established  beyond  peradventure,  it  re- 
mained to  see  whether  any  claimants  survived 
of  the  McDuffie  name  and  property.  They 
failing  to  appear,  the  Earl  had  taken  courage 
to  pursue  his  successful  wooing  and,  while  at 
Vue  de  1'Eau,  had  received  from  his  lawyer, 
conscientiously  anxious  to  give  the  full  worth 
of  his  fee,  a  further  discovery.  From  a  "  Vir- 
ginia Gazette"  of  the  year  of  the  Massacre  at 
Wild  Cat  Hollow,  had  been  unearthed  a  quaint 
lament  in  doggerel,  depicting  the  sad  fate  of 
Angus  McDuffie  and  his  wife,  wherein  cc  Mel- 
pomene "  was  called  upon  to  aid  the  writer  to 
rejoice  that  the  "  sweet  innocent  babe,  left  for 
dead  on  the  banks  of  the  stream,"  had  been 
"rescued  by  Charity's  hand,  and  restored  to 
Hygeia's  fair  beam !  " 

"  Thus,  curiously,  hath  come  to  light,"  wrote 
the  scribe  to  his  noble  client,  "  a  suggestion  that  a 
scion  did  survive,  of  the  unfortunate  family  in 
which  your  lordship  is  pleased  to  take  interest. 
But  my  utmost  endeavours  having  failed  to  de- 
velop aught  further  concerning  them,  I  can  but 
submit  this,  with  humble  duty,  from,  my  Lord, 

"  Your  lordship's  obligd.  humble  serv't 

"TlMOTHEUS  WORME, 

"Atty  &  Counsellor  at  Law." 


284          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

A  hundred  times  Avenel  objurgated  the 
scribbler  of  those  wretched  lines  published  in 
the  poet's  corner  of  the  dull  Provincial  sheet. 
But  for  them,  he  might  have  now  slept  o* 
nights,  and  eaten  with  a  hearty  appetite ! 

Now  must  he,  after  braving  the  odious  sea, 
encounter  the  scarcely  more  congenial  journey 
through  western  woodlands.  There  was  no 
help  for  it.  Atra  Cura  bid  him  repair  to  the 
region  of  the  McDuffies  and  other  savage 
countrymen.  Engaging  the  escort  of  Mr. 
Timotheus  Worme,  —  to  be  utilised  in  the 
search  of  parish  registers  and  county  records, 
were  such  things  existent  in  barbaric  wilds  — 
and  attended  by  his  valet  and  guides  and  reti- 
nue,—  he  had  accomplished  the  expedition  as 
we  have  seen,  turning  aside  to  search  the  rec- 
ords at  Greenway  Court.  The  discovery 
there  ofthe  McDuffie  will,  and  his  secret  re- 
moval of  Alan's  name  from  it,  might  have 
enabled  him  to  go  on  his  way  in  some  degree 
.of  comfort.  Then  had  fallen  the  thunder  of 
heaven  in  Geoffry  Flower's  attack ! 

Thus,  like  the  Genie  of  the  Bottle  before 
the  Arabian  fisherman,  his  crime,  arising,  had 
at  once  assumed  a  formidable  shape  and  size. 
His  successful  theft  of  Flower's  papers  had 
saved  him  from  collapse  into  utter  desperation. 
Taking  hasty  leave  of  Greenway  Court,  he 
had  gone  away,  intending  to  visit  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  old  home  of  the  McDuffies, 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          285 

and  there  renew  his  search  for  a  trace  of  the 
lost  heir. 

As  luck  would  have  it,  my  Lord,  twisting 
his  ankle  by  the  fall  of  his  horse  in  a  wash  of 
the  road,  was  detained  for  a  few  days  at  a  way- 
side hostelry,  where  an  officer,  sent  ahead  of 
Lord  Dunmore  on  business  of  the  commissariat, 
made  their  evening  together  pleasant  by  a  dra- 
matic account  of  the  visit  of  Helen  Poythress 
and  her  party  to  Lord  Fairfax,  adding  the  facts 
of  her  story  as  publicly  declared. 

Now  was  Avenel's  way  lightened  by  radiance 
from  the  clouds  !  All  that  he  had  sought  was 
made  clear  to  him.  The  identity  of  Alan 
Carnes  with  Alan  McDuffie,  and  with  Rolfe 
Poythress,  lately  killed  by  the  Indians,  was 
assured. 

Into  what  extravagance  of  cruel  joy  the  man 
was  led  by  this  sudden  bursting  of  his  "big  bub- 
ble of  fear,  can  be  imagined.  Far  into  that 
night  he  had  remained  at  table,  drinking 
deeply  of  the  landlord's  brandy,  and  talking, 
to  the  disgust  of  the  British  Major  who  finally 
consigned  him  in  a  maudlin  state  to  the  care  of 
Fleury  to  be  taken  off  to  bed. 

Next  morning,  although  heavy  from  over- 
night's potations,  Avenel  was  hilarious.  An- 
nouncing to  Fleury  that  they  should  return 
now  to  the  low  country,  where  his  marriage 
would  at  once  take  place,  after  which  event  he 
should  sail  for  home,  and  never  again  set  foot 


286          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

in  this  "  raw  unsupportable  region/'  my  Lord 
strolled  out  on  the  patch  of  greensward  in  front 
of  the  inn  door.  There,  by  a  horse-trough, 
under  a  great  spreading  walnut-tree,  his  men 
were  employed  in  packing  his  beasts  to  get  away. 

To-day,  even  old  Worme  came  under  the 
influence  of  his  lordship's  good  spirits.  The 
rusty  old  fellow  thought  it,  indeed,  the  height 
of  condescension  in  his  patron  to  avow  him- 
self so  well  pleased  with  his  surroundings. 
Avenel,  warming  in  praise,  declared  that  he 
found  the  sun  of  Virginia  brighter,  the  soil 
richer,  the  air  finer  than  anything  within  the 
circumference  of  the  British  Isles ;  which,  al- 
though historically  true,  was  yet  a  surprising 
admission  from  such  a  source.  His  lordship 
had  just  proceeded  so  far  as  to  slap  Worme 
upon  the  back,  and  swear  be  was  the  jolliest 
old  blade  out  of  England,  when  lo  !  from  afar 
came  the  sound  of  horses'  hoofs,  galloping 
evenly  and  in  numbers !  Presently,  our  trav- 
ellers saw  coming  from  the  direction  they 
meant  to  take,  a  party  of  armed  men  in  fringed 
hunting-shirts  and  caps,  who,  pulling  up  for  a 
moment  beside  the  horse-trough  to  wash  the 
mouths  of  their  sweating  steeds,  announced 
that  the  Indians  were  on  the  move! 

Avenel,  whose  knees  shook  under  him,  was 
now  accosted  by  the  leader  of  the  band,  a  tall, 
powerful  young  man,  with  sallow  cheeks,  and 
long  locks  of  carelessly  dressed  hair. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          287 

"You  don't  recognise  me,  my  Lord,"  said 
this  individual,  courteously.  "  And  no  wonder, 
since  'tis  from  the  grave,  so  to  speak,  I  have 
emerged  —  my  best  friends  believing  me  at 
this  moment  to  be  whitening  with  my  bones  a 
Mingo  battle-ground.  But  I  saw  you  in  town, 
at  the  Ball  given  to  my  Lady  Dunmore,  and 
had  the  honour  of  presentation  to  you  at  the 
hands  of  my  cousin,  Miss  Poythress." 

"Curse  his  provincial  ceremony,"  said  my 
Lord  within  himself.  "  To  stand  palavering 
here,  when  every  minute's  precious  to  our 
scalps." 

"  No  doubt,  no  doubt,"  he  said  stiffly. 
"But  I  can't  be  expected  to  remember  every 
one.  Pray,  sir  whatever  may  be  your 
name  —  " 

"  Rolfe  Poythress,  at  your  service,"  said  the 
other,  taking  off  his  hat,  with  an  air  as  clearly 
well-bred  as  it  was  tinctured  with  contempt ; 
"  and  I  may  add,  my  Lord,  that  my  intention 
in  addressing  you,  was  to  favour  my  uncle,  by 
indicating  to  his  kinsman  a  safe  place  of  retreat 
until  this  alarm  be  over.  By  taking  the  right 
one  of  the  cross-roads  some  three  miles  farther, 
as  we  go  now,  half  a  day's  ride  will  bring  you 
to  the  house  of  one  Swan,  a  farmer,  where  you 
will  find  decent  accommodations.  And  so, 
my  Lord,  you  will  permit  me  to  wish  you 
good  morning,  and  bon  voyage" 

As  he  again  lifted  his  hat,  and,  summoning 


288          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

his  troopers,  rode  with  them  at  mad  speed 
through  the  country  they  were  going  to  put 
upon  its  guard,  Avenel  stood  aghast.  The 
people  of  his  retinue,  who  believed  him  dazed 
by  apprehension  of  the  foe,  had  to  assist  him 
into  the  saddle,  and  then  to  direct  his  course 
according  to  the  suggestion  of  the  Captain  of 
the  rangers. 

What  was  the  true  motive  of  Avenel's  visit 
to  Deer  Lodge  ?  Atra  Cura  again.  So  soon 
as  the  Indian  scare  was  over,  he  had  been 
driven  miserably  to  seek  the  adoptive  mother 
of  one  he  had  not  failed  to  recognise.  A  curl 
of  the  young  man's  lip,  a  certain  inflation  of 
the  nostril,  permitted  the  usurper  no  doubt  of 
his  parentage.  Heredity  had  betrayed  what 
had  been  covered  in  the  grave  of  years. 

What  he  was  to  accomplish  with  Mrs.  Poy- 
thress,  he  did  not  know.  Should  she  give  evi- 
dence of  possessing  his  secret,  his  hope  was  to 
make  terms  with  her  and  her  son.  Surely,  a 
poor  uncouth  provincial  widow  had  her  price ! 

But  here  he  had  been  scorned,  ignored  by 
her,  and  on  top  of  that,  had  been  met  by  Hugh 
Poythress,  with  the  blasting  announcement  that 
his  treachery  was  common  property. 

What  to  do,  whither  to  turn,  wrapping  the 
poor  shreds  of  aristocratic  dignity  around  him, 
did  not  at  first  suggest  itself.  The  desperation 
of  a  villain  was  in  his  case  tempered  by  the 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          289 

cunning  of  one  timorous  by  nature.  So  long 
as  he  held  in  his  possession  the  attested  confes- 
sion of  Judith  Carnes,  he  felt  safe  enough  against 
conviction.  But  a  long  interminable  vista  of 
care  and  shame  and  annoyance  opened  before 
him,  and  the  break  of  the  marriage  angered 
and  mortified  him.  All  the  malignity  of  his 
disposition  centred  in  the  thought  of  Flower, 
who  must  have  betrayed  him  to  Colonel  Poy- 
thress.  Rolfe,  the  real  obstacle  in  his  path, 
assumed,  for  the  moment,  a  less  important  as- 
pect. It  would  be  time  enough  to  machinate 
further  against  him,  when  he  had  done  with 
Geoffry  Flower.  If  it  were  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth,  he  would  run  Flower  down,  disgrace 
him,  taste  the  sweets  of  revenge.  And  in  aid 
of  this,  he  counted  greatly  upon  his  influence 
with  Flower's  chief. 


XIV 

"Let  us  mind  the  tenth  day  of  October 
Seventy-four  which  caused  woe, 
The  Indian  savages,  they  did  discover 
The  pleasant  banks  of  the  Ohio. 

"  The  battle  beginning  in  the  morning 
Throughout  the  day  it  lasted  sore, 
Till  the  coming  shades  were  returning  down 
Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio. 

****** 

"  Col.  Lewis  and  some  noble  Captains 
Did  down  to  death  like  Uriah  go. 
Alas  !  their  heads  wound  up  in  napkins 
Upon  the  banks  of  the  Ohio." 

(From  an  old  song  made  upon  the  battle  of  Point  Pleasant  by  the  moun- 
taineers of  Western  Virginia. ) 

WHILE  the  first  Congress  at  Philadelphia 
held  its  sittings  under  the  veil  of  se- 
crecy, and   people  in  the  lowlands  of 
Virginia  were  rent  with  apprehension  of  what 
Great  Britain  meant  to  do  regarding  this  bold 
performance,  Lord  Dunmore,  on  the  frontier, 
kept  his  intentions  also  very  dark.     The  notion 
that  he  was  in  treaty  with  the  Indians  to  fight 
for  the  Crown  against  Virginia,  gained  ground 

290 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         291 

because  of  this  reticence  about  his  plans.  All 
that  was  actually  known  about  Dunmore's  army, 
was  that  he  had  agreed  to  come  down  the  Ohio 
from  Fort  Pitt,  and,  meeting  Andrew  Lewis, 
give  fight  to  the  Nations  somewhere  near  the 
banks  of  that  river. 

The  task  before  Lewis'  volunteers  —  that 
of  breaking  a  way  across  a  hundred  and  sixty 
miles  of  resistant  woodland  to  reach  the  river 
—  was  formidable.  Its  success  was  in  great 
part  due  to  the  magnetic  quality  of  the  leader 
chosen  to  conduct  the  expedition.  Lewis,  of 
heroic  Scottish  stock,  a  lord  of  the  hill  country 
where  he  had  grown  up,  a  warm  friend  of  Pro- 
vincial progress,  was  known  also  as  a  soldier 
tried  and  true.  So  the  sons  and  grandsons  of 
Caledonian  immigrants  took  down  from  their 
cabin  walls  the  Andrea  Ferrara  blades  with 
which  their  sires  had  fought  Scotland's  battles ; 
the  descendants  of  Englishmen,  Irishmen,  and 
Germans  ;  gentlemen,  farmers,  mechanics,  deer- 
stalkers, still-hunters,  —  all  wearing  buckskin 
suits  and  bucktails  in  their  hats,  —  seized  their 
rifles,  packed  their  own  horses  with  their  own 
tents,  and  arms,  and  provisions,  and,  bidding 
adieu  to  sweethearts,  wives,  and  mothers,  fell 
into  line  to  swell  the  numbers  of  "  Long 
Knives." 

Seventeen  years  before,  Lewis  had  made  a 
similar  essay  to  traverse  the  wilderness,  although 
farther  to  the  south.  He  had  conducted  four 


292          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

companies  of  home  militia,  of  whom  the  Cap- 
tains were  Audley  Paul,  William  Preston, 
William  Hogg,  and  John  Alexander ;  and  after 
an  abortive  effort  to  find  the  Shawnee  tribe  they 
desired  to  punish,  the  heroes  of  the  "  Sandy 
Creek  Voyage "  had  marched  back,  footsore, 
frozen,  starved ;  those  who  did  not  perish  out- 
right having  subsisted  for  days  on  the  leather 
strings  of  their  moccasins,  the  belts  of  their 
hunting-shirts,  and  the  flaps  of  their  shot- 
pouches. 

But  now  the  season  smiled;  the  men  —  de- 
prived of  spirituous  excitement,  their  rations 
reduced  to  meal,  flour,  beef,  and  such  game 
as  they  could  kill  —  were  in  good  marching 
plight  —  sound,  clear-headed,  and  vigorous; 
and  so,  piloted  by  Arbuckle,  a  skilled  rover  of 
the  forest,  —  their  flour,  salt,  and  ammunition 
carried  on  unshod  horses,  preceding  a  drove  of 
cattle  intended  for  the  meat  supply  of  the 
troops,  —  the  great  march  began. 

Leaving  Camp  Union, —  now  the  town  of 
Lewisburg,  about  nine  miles  west  of  the  White 
Sulphur  Springs, —  this  army  of  eleven  hundred 
men  forced  a  way  through  nature's  fastness, 
never  before  penetrated  except  by  red-men. 
Into  the  haunts  of  beautiful,  free-roaming 
deer  and  elk,  bear  and  buffalo  and  beaver  — 
where  wolves  prowled,  and  the  jewel  eyes 
of  panther  and  wildcat  glittered  after  dark ; 
where,  in  the  covert  of  the  ferns,  rattlesnake 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          293 

and  copperhead,  moccasin  and  blacksnake  lay, 
scarcely  stirring  at  the  approach  of  their  ap- 
pointed enemy,  —  they  marched,  finding  it  like 
Jparadise  before  the  fall  of  man.  For  daily  de- 
lectation, the  soldiers  came  upon  such  wonders 
as  the  black,  bituminous  tarns,  into  which  ob- 
jects cast  return  no  more  to  light ;  the  burning 
springs  ;  the  picture-stones  of  the  aborigines  — 
spaces  cleared  upon  the  mountain  wall  and 
carved  with  an  infinitude  of  images  represent- 
ing warriors,  birds,  and  beasts ;  the  gorges,  pin- 
nacles, arches  of  rock,  and  caverns  bedight 
with  mineral  gems  and  stalactites ;  dewdrops  of 
alum  fringing  the  watercourses  ;  rocky  moun- 
tains of  silvery  sheen  rising  out  of  forests  of 
oak  or  chestnut  where  the  ground  beneath  was 
crusted  with  layers  of  many  crops  of  nuts ; 
mighty  waterfalls  plunging  between  gates  of 
granite  from  rivers  navigable  with  canoes 
almost  to  their  source,  and  full  of  fish ;  the 
huge  shafts  of  magnolia-trees  crowned  with 
glossy  leaves ;  the  liriodendrons,  with  trunks 
six  feet  in  diameter,  soaring  eighty  or  even  a 
hundred  feet  before  they  condescended  to  -put 
forth  a  limb ;  majestic  pines  and  other  coni- 
fers; sugar  maples  yielding  nectar  to  a  hole 
through  their  bark ;  festoons  of  ripe,  purple 
grapes,  and  abundant  berries,  —  all  the  treas- 
ure-house, in  short,  of  the  American  forest  of 
the  tempered  region,  as  it  was  known  by  the 
red-man  first. 


294         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Eight  and  a  half  miles  a  day  of  marching 
carried  the  troops  across  the  full  distance  in 
nineteen  days ;  and,  arriving  at  Point  Pleasant, 
tattered  and  torn  to  almost  nakedness,  their 
General,  who  had  shared  with  them  the  hard- 
ships of  the  way,  found  his  men  not  appreci- 
ably the  worse  for  it  all. 

Amid  the  glades  of  rainbow  hues  between 
the  banks  of  the  Ohio  and  Kanawha  rivers, 
a  camp  was  formed ;  for  nine  days  the  troops 
rested  on  their  arms,  their  hearts  pulsing  with 
keen  expectation  of  an  action,  that,  with  the 
aid  of  Lord  Dunmore's  forces,  they  had  every 
reason  to  hope  would  be  victorious. 

Day  after  day,  they  strained  eyes  and  ears 
for  news  of  his  lordship,  to  whom  Lewis  had 
sent  scouts  asking  for  directions ;  but  no  news 
came  —  not  a  hint  of  the  Governor's  where- 
abouts, believed  to  be  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
Indian  villages  some  eighty  miles  distant  in  the 
woods  of  the  trans-Ohio.  What  place  was  that 
for  an  ally  !  grumbled  Lewis'  men.  At  last,  on 
the  ninth  of  October,  three  couriers,  formerly 
traders  among  the  Indians,  arrived,  bearing 
despatches  from  the  General  of  the  Northern 
Division.  Lewis,  holding  his  eager  army  in  a 
leash,  was  told  to  break  camp,  cross  the  Ohio, 
and  march  directly  to  the  Scioto  villages,  where 
Dunmore  would  give  him  rendezvous.  At 
this,  the  chafing  anger  of  the  famous  borderer 
—  who  could  see  neither  rhyme  nor  reason  in 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          295 

the  move  proposed  —  fairly  boiled  over.  He, 
under  whose  tread  "the  ground  seemed  to 
tremble/'  now  burst  forth  in  awful  wrath  against 
the  English  commander,  declaring  the  capri- 
cious order  had  come  too  late,  since  there  was 
every  indication  of  a  foe  close  at  hand,  lurking 
and  waiting  opportunity  to  strike. 

Simultaneously  with  the  arrival  in  camp  of 
the  Governor's  express,  Captain  Rolfe  Poy- 
thress  reported  for  duty,  and  was  assigned  to 
the  staff  of  the  General's  brother  Charles,  the 
Colonel  at  the  head  of  the  Augusta  troops. 
When,  seeing  that  a  fight  was  imminent,  Poy- 
thress,  at  the  recommendation  of  his  chief, 
repaired  to  his  tent  of  boughs  for  a  night's 
sound  sleep,  while  there  was  yet  time  to  enjoy 
it,  he  was  accosted  by  an  old  acquaintance  in 
the  person  of  one  of  the  division-captains,  going 
off  his  day's  command  of  the  guard. 

cc  Welcome,  comrade,"  said  Matthews,  offer- 
ing Rolfe  a  hearty  handshake.  <c  You  have 
come  in  the  nick  of  time ;  for  to-morrow,  if  I 
mistake  not,  the  red  fellows  will  be  down  on  us 
hot  and  thick.  Hark  ye,  Poythress,  you  have 
got  what  we  country  folks  call  horse-sense.  I 
want  your  opinion  on  a  bit  of  gossip  I  picked 
up  just  now  from  one  of  the  couriers  sent  by 
my  Lord  Governor  with  our  strange  orders." 

"Till  I  hear  it,  I'm  like  the  donkey,  — all 
ears,"  replied  Rolfe,  smiling. 

"This  man  —  a  sneaking  customer  I  used  to 


296          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

know  up  Frederick  way,  tells  me  that  just  across 
the  river  yesterday  he  saw  a  force  of  Indians 
would  cover  four  acres  of  ground ;  an  army  fit 
to  overwhelm  and  wipe  us  out  for  numbers. 
Now,  if  Lord  Dunmore's  courier  knows  so 
much,  of  course  Dunmore  knows  it,  and  if  he 
is  going  to  leave  us  in  the  lurch,  then  are  we 
betrayed  most  treacherously  by  our  paternal 
Governor.  And,  if  this  be  the  case,  let  my 
Lord  the  Governor  beware  of  the  vengeance 
of  Virginians." 

"  Great  Heavens  !  'tis  fairly  impossible,"  said 
Rolfe. 

"  We  shall  see,"  added  the  Captain,  wagging 
a  beard  that  reached  to  his  waist.  "  'Tis  not  my 
business  to  put  such  matters  before  the  Gen- 
eral. To  judge  from  the  wrath  he  is  in  since 
these  messengers  arrived,  he  is  fully  aware  of 
our  peril.  The  whole  camp  is  in  a  turmoil  of 
indignation,  and  you  hear  naught  but  threats 
against  all  Britishers." 

"  It  has  a  black  look,  I  own,"  answered 
Rolfe,  ragged  and  worn  from  his  continuous 
ride,  and  dropping  with  want  of  sleep. 

"  Take  my  advice  and  get  a  nap  now,"  went 
on  his  friend  Matthews;  "for  whether  to-mor- 
row we  move  or  no,  to-morrow's  sun  may  rise 
upon  bloody  work." 

The  Captain's  prophecy  proved  true.  Early 
in  the  morning  of  the  tenth  of  October,  two 
of  Lewis'  pickets,  taking  observations  three 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          297 

miles  up  the  river's  bank,  came  upon  a  vast 
body  of  savages,  who,  having  crossed  on  rafts 
in  the  night,  were  preparing  for  instant  con- 
flict. One  of  the  scouts,  struck  down  by  a 
flying  bullet,  was  left  lying  in  the  underwood. 
The  other,  with  eyes  like  saucers,  tore  back 
to  headquarters,  declaring  that  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach  he  had  seen  painted  faces,  rifles, 
tomahawks,  war-clubs,  and  battle-axes  —  such 
an  Indian  force  as  no  man  had  viewed  before 
him! 

So  now  there  was  no  longer  question  of  de- 
pendence upon  absent  allies.  Launched  like 
a  thunderbolt,  the  Augusta  troops  took  the 
lead  in  meeting  the  attack.  Of  this  regiment 
every  man  was  personally  known  to  and  be- 
loved by  the  Commander,  and  it  was  led  by 
his  younger  brother,  "Brave  Charley,"  the  hero 
of  so  many  gallant  exploits  and  daring  escapes 
from  danger  that,  among  the  mountaineers  of 
the  Alleghanies,  his  deeds  were  as  household 
words.  Most  of  his  men  were  above  average 
height,  inured  to  every  kind  of  hardship,  accus- 
tomed to  toy  with  peril,  and  they  now  swung 
into  line  coolly,  carrying  with  them  the  flower 
of  youth  from  every  family  in  their  region. 

Opposed  to  them  were  a  strong  and  pictu- 
resque group  of  the  greatest  warriors  of  the 
gathered  tribes.  Of  the  Indian  army,  the  larger 
number  were  Shawnees,  chief  of  the  Algonquin 
family,  who,  of  the  terrible  foes  of  our  early 


298          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

settlers,  were  the  most  to  be  feared,  since  they 
held  in  contempt  as  weaklings  all  men  other 
than  themselves,  and  boasted  of  having  killed 
more  whites  than  any  other  tribe.  It  was  they 
who  had  cut  off  the  British  force  under  Brad- 
dock  in  1755,  had  defeated  Major  Grant  and 
his  Scotch  Highlanders  at  Fort  Duquesne  in 
1758,  in  1783  routed  the  Kentuckians  at  Blue 
Licks,  and  were  later  to  rebuff  the  United 
States  troops  under  Harmar,  and  beat  the  army 
of  St.  Clair.  In  the  van  of  this  formidable 
host  was  the  sachem  Cornstalk,  king  of  the 
Northern  Confederacy,  and  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  whole  savage  army  now  in  the 
field.  Under  him  were  Logan,  Blue  Jacket, 
Red  Hawk,  Chiyawee,  and  other  warriors  as 
notable,  at  the  head  of  their  several  tribes. 

Cornstalk  —  the  general  now  brought  into 
opposition  with  Andrew  Lewis  in  the  great 
struggle  —  was  a  foeman  worthy  of  Lewis' 
steel;  a  born  hero,  a  type  of  the  best  of  his 
race.  To  him  have  always  been  conceded  by 
history,  a  generous  nature,  valour,  eloquence, 
inexhaustible  strength,  and  great  beauty  of 
person,  as  well  as  high  ability  in  council.  In 
the  halls  of  border  tradition  his  form  and 
Logan's  tower. 

Hardly  had  the  Augusta  troops  passed 
swiftly  beyond  the  outer  limits  of  their  camp, 
when  the  Indians,  greatly  outnumbering  them, 
advanced  to  encounter  them  with  the  fierce  but 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          299 

stealthy  approach  characteristic  of  their  method 
of  attack.  In  the  first  onset,  fell  "Brave 
Charley,"  the  idol  of  his  troops  and  friends ; 
he  whose  headlong  charge  into  the  fray,  wear- 
ing a  scarlet  waistcoat,  made  him  a  shining 
mark  for  the  bullets  that  laid  him  low.  Fall- 
ing at  the  foot  of  a  tree,  the  young  Colonel 
strove  to  cheer  his  men  to  determined  victory ; 
then,  his  words  cut  short  by  the  agony  of 
death,  was  carried  back  into  a  tent,  where  he 
shortly  breathed  his  last.  After  this  lamenta- 
ble occurrence,  Captain  Benjamin  Harrison 
took  the  Colonel's  place,  and  bravely  carried 
on  the  stubborn  fight  till,  borne  down  by 
superior  forces,  the  Long  Knives  began  to 
waver.  Colonel  Fleming,  on  the  left,  his 
regiment  supporting  Harrison's,  was,  like  his 
predecessor  Lewis,  shot  and  borne  helpless 
from  the  field.  At  this  loss  of  important  offi- 
cers the  savages  rejoiced,  and  thought  their 
triumph  assured.  But  directly  the  whole  re- 
serve of  Virginian  troops,  charging  to  the  rescue 
of  their  brothers,  sent  into  the  Indian  ranks 
such  a  continuous  galling  fire  as  made  even 
the  stoic  warriors  falter  and  recoil. 

Let  us  quote  the  description  of  this  famous 
affair  from  an  historian  of  long  ago,  de  Haas: 
"  The  battle  scene  was  now  terribly  grand. 
There  stood  the  combatants ;  terror,  rage,  dis- 
appointment, and  despair  riveted  upon  the 
painted  faces  of  one,  while  calm  resolution  and 


joo         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

the  unbending  will  to  do  or  die  were  marked 
upon  the  other.  Neither  party  would  retreat, 
neither  could  advance.  The  noise  of  the  firing 
was  tremendous.  No  single  gun  could  be  dis- 
tinguished—  it  was  one  constant  roar.  The 
rifle  and  tomahawk  now  did  their  work  with 
dreadful  certainty.  The  confusion  and  per- 
turbation of  the  camp  had  now  arrived  at  its 
greatest  height.  The  confused  sounds  and 
wild  uproar  of  the  battle  added  greatly  to  the 
terror  of  the  scene.  The  shouting  of  the 
whites,  the  continual  roar  of  firearms,  the  war- 
whoops  and  dismal  yellings  of  the  Indians, 
were  discordant  and  terrific." 

From  a  later  chronicler1  we  take  another 
version:  "It  was  throughout  a  terrible  scene 
—  the  ring  of  rifles  and  roar  of  muskets, 
the  clubbed  guns  and  flashing  knives  —  the 
fight  hand  to  hand  —  the  scream  for  mercy, 
smothered  in  the  death  groan  —  the  crashing 
through  the  brush  —  the  advance  —  the  re- 
treat —  the  pursuit,  every  man  for  himself 
with  his  enemy  in  view  —  the  scattering  on 
every  side  —  the  sounds  of  battle  dying  away 
into  a  pistol  shot  here  and  there  through  the 
wood,  and  a  shriek  —  the  collecting  again  of 
the  whites,  covered  with  gore  and  sweat,  bear- 
ing trophies  of  the  slain,  their  dripping  knives 
in  one  hand,  and  rifle  barrel  bent  and  smeared 

1J.  Lewis  Peyton,  author  of  "  History  of  Augusta  County." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          301 

with  brain  and  hair  in  the  other  —  no  language 
can  adequately  describe  it." 

The  author  of"  The  Winning  of  the  West "  1 
calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  this  fight  was 
"  a  succession  of  single  combats,  each  man 
sheltering  himself  behind  a  stump  or  rock,  or 
tree  trunk,  the  superiority  of  the  backwoods- 
men in  the  use  of  the  rifle  being  offset  by  the 
superiority  of  their  foes  in  the  art  of  hiding 
and  shielding  themselves  from  harm.  The 
hostile  lines,  though  about  a  mile  and  a  quarter 
in  length,  were  so  close  together,  being  never 
more  than  twenty  yards  apart,  that  many  of 
the  combatants  grappled  in  hand-to-hand  fight- 
ing, and  tomahawked  or  stabbed  each  other  to 
death." 

Rolfe  Poythress,  his  hunting-suit  literally 
dyed  in  the  blood  of  a  comrade  who  had 
fallen  in  his  arms,  was  seen  ever  in  the  thick 
of  the  combat.  He  had  escaped  what  seemed 
certain  death,  time  and  again.  With  his  jaw 
set,  his  eye  afire,  his  finger  untiring  at  the  trig- 
ger, he  had  sent  more  than  one  of  the  heathen 
to  their  last  account,  when  a  brave,  meeting 
him  in  a  hand-to-hand  encounter,  after  a  tussle 
straining  every  nerve  of  the  Virginian  to  hold 
his  own,  had  been  struck  down  on  his  knees, 
and,  at  Rolfe's  mercy,  expected  the  final  death- 
stroke  of  his  knife. 

l  Hon.  Theodore  Roosevelt. 


302          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Throughout  the  long  and  frightful  morning, 
the  whites  had  heard  repeatedly  the  ringing 
tones  of  Cornstalk,  urging  his  warriors  to  "  be 
strong"  and  "strike  true."  But  not  until  this 
moment,  did  a  voice  sound  in  Rolfe's  ears  with 
which  two  previous  occasions  had  made  him 
now  familiar.  Across  a  chasm  filled  with  fallen 
trees  into  which  bodies  had  been  tumbling 
thick  and  fast,  came  a  cry :  — 

"  Hold,  Captain !  It  is  the  last  one  who 
belongs  to  me,  though  he  is  not  of  my  blood. 
If  he  must  die,  let  it  be  by  my  bullet,  not  your 
knife.  And  this  I  ask,  because  you,  Captain, 
have  twice  escaped  death  at  my  hands." 

Rolfe  turned  and  confronted  Logan.  The 
Mingo  chief,  now  free  from  the  influence 
of  drink,  had  resumed  his  former  lofty  air. 
Stained  with  battle,  he  yet  retained  the  com- 
mand of  himself  others  less  great  had  seemed 
to  lose  in  the  wild-beast  fury  of  their  attack. 
There  was  even  a  tinge  of  melancholy  in  his 
voice  and  eye. 

Without  hesitation,  Rolfe  let  his  knife  fall 
to  his  belt,  and  standing  back  waved  to  his 
captive  to  go  free. 

"  He  is  yours,  Chief,"  said  the  young  Vir- 
ginian. "And  let  him  come  to  his  end  by 
another  hand  than  yours  or  mine.  I  give  him 
to  you  for  the  day  of  our  first  meeting  —  not 
our  last,  remember,  when  you  drove  me  to 
almost  certain  death." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         303 

A  faint  smile  illumined  the  stern  features  of 
the  chief,  passing  as  it  came. 

"  I  think  you  have  a  charmed  life,  Captain," 
he  said,  while  the  freed  Indian  bounded  like  a 
fawn  into  the  bushes.  "  If  you  like,  I  promise 
never  to  fight  with  you  again.  But  Logan's 
course  is  almost  run.  Soon,  he  will  be  heard 
of  no  more  among  the  braves.  Now,  Captain, 
let  us  again  try  to  see  which  of  our  armies  will 
win  this  day." 

Logan  vanished.  In  the  few  moments  occu- 
pied by  this  episode  of  battle,  the  tide  had  turned 
decisively  for  the  Virginians.  Although  their 
ground  was  scattered  with  dead  and  wounded, 
high  noon  heard  a  distinct  decrease  in  the 
enemy's  fire  and,  a  few  hours  later,  the  Indians 
were  in  full  retreat  across  the  Ohio.  Corn- 
stalk, who  had  conducted  his  side  with  mas- 
terly skill,  knew  that  their  chance  was  gone; 
and,  to  save  useless  bloodshed,  gathered  up  his 
corpses  scalped  by  their  friends  to  prevent  such 
a  fate  at  the  hands  of  enemies,  and,  throwing 
them  into  the  river,  stole  silently  away. 

The  Virginians,  left  in  possession  of  a  field 
of  victory,  now  found  out  the  full  extent  of 
their  own  terrible  losses.  Many  an  ingleside 
of  the  Valley  beyond  the  mountains  would  be 
called  upon  to  mourn  this  sad  day's  work. 
Among  their  officers,  in  especial,  the  murder- 
ous Indian  fire  had  left  numerous  gaps.  Rolfe, 
crossing  the  field,  and  identifying  with  a  sad 


304          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

heart,  one  after  the  other,  friends  of  a  lifetime 
in  the  stark  figures  they  were  sorting  out,  came 
upon  Matthews,  the  late  Captain  of  the  guard. 

The  poor  fellow  was  at  the  last  gasp,  his 
skull  cloven  with  a  frightful  wound  from  a 
tomahawk.  When  Rolfe  knelt  beside  him,  he 
writhed  and  cried  out,  "  What  did  I  tell  you  ? 
Who  was  it  let  us  be  outnumbered  ?  "  Then, 
cursing  Lord  Dunmore,  he  gave  up  the  ghost. 

Andrew  Lewis,  busy  with  the  transportation 
of  the  wounded  into  a  rude  fortification  that 
during  the  heat  of  battle  had  been  hastily  con- 
structed by  him  for  the  safety  of  his  army  in 
case  they  should  be  worsted  for  the  day,  looked 
years  older  than  he  had  done  before  the  fight. 
To  him  the  joy  of  triumph  was  more  than 
balanced  by  the  loss  of  his  valiant  brother  and 
of  other  dear  friends  who  had  bit  the  dust. 
Already,  the  nether  side  of  war  had  begun  to 
show  its  web  of  horror. 

But  he  had  no  time  to  spend  upon  any  sen- 
timent save  the  desire  to  follow  up  their  victory. 

On  the  morning  after  the  battle,  Lewis,  with 
all  his  available  forces,  left  Point  Pleasant, 
crossed  the  river,  and  proceeded  by  forced 
marches  through  the  woods  in  the  direction 
of  Pickaway  Plains.  The  Indians,  fleeing  be- 
fore him  or  hanging  upon  his  flanks,  trembled 
at  sight  of  this  yet  unexhausted  force  of  an 
army  which  had  wrought  such  havoc  in  their 
ranks. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          305 

Arrived  at  the  Plains,  the  first  object  to 
greet  the  eyes  of  the  leader  of  the  Virginians 
was  the  smoke  of  some  villages  fired  by  their 
owners,  who,  retreating,  had  made  all  haste  to 
reach  the  Governor's  camp  and  there  implore 
protection  against  the  formidable  Lewis.  In- 
formation of  this  fact,  conveyed  to  Lewis  where 
they  had  halted  for  the  night,  roused  in  him 
a  new  accession  of  swelling  anger. 

"  Captain  Poythress  will  remain  alone  with 
me,"  he  remarked  to  a  group  of  officers,  who 
accordingly  withdrew. 

"  The  air  smells  of  treachery,  Captain,"  said 
Lewis,  frowning  darkly. 

"  I  begin  to  agree  with  you,  General,"  an- 
swered Rolfe,  his  lips  tightening. 

"  I  presume  you  are  aware  that  I  have  just 
had  an  express  from  my  Lord,  bidding  me 
imperatively  stay  where  I  am,  and  push  no 
further.  What !  I,  who  carry  upon  my  hands 
the  blood  of  my  brother  and  kin  and  friends 
slaughtered  because  they  were  not  reinforced 
by  Dunmore?  I  to  stand  here  like  a  sheep 
and  allow  the  enemy  to  escape  unhurt  ?  By 
the  living  God,  I'd  not  do  it  were  there  twenty 
such  arrogant  Britishers  to  bid  me.  To-mor- 


row we  move  on." 


"You  have  orders  for  me,  sir?"  interposed 
Rolfe,  seeing  a  favourable  moment  to  stem  the 
tide  of  his  superior's  wrath. 

"  I  have.     The  letter  coming  to  you  by  the 


306          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

same  courier,  from  one  of  my  Lord  Dunmore's 
staff  officers  —  " 

"You  knew  of  it,  sir?" 

"  I  must  see  it." 

"  I  am  at  your  orders,  General,"  said  the 
young  man,  colouring  as  he  drew  a  paper  from 
the  inner  pocket  of  his  hunting-shirt  stained 
and  stiffened  with  dried  gore.  "  But  I  may 
explain  'tis  only  from  a  friend,  who,  having 
heard  I  was  raised  again  from  the  dead,  writes 
to  congratulate  me.  The  rest  —  as  you  will 
see  —  relates  to  the  inaction  of  their  life." 

"  It  is  there  I  wish  to  begin,"  said  the 
General,  his  eyes  running  over  the  sheet 
hungrily. 

"  You  may  believe,"  the  letter  ran,  from  the 
indicated  point,  "  that  our  camp  in  this  moun- 
tainous pine  wood  is  little  cheerful.  'Tis  varied 
but  by  the  ceremonial  visits  of  solemn  chieftains 
who  wait  on  my  Lord  to  discuss  questions  of 
treaty,  and  Heaven  knows  what  beside  —  all 
our  fine  visions  of  a  scrimmage  with  the  red 
fellows  have  melted  into  thin  air.  You,  no 
doubt,  are  like  us,  chafing  at  Mars'  delays  —  " 

"  Great  God  !  To  read  this  after  Monday's 
fight,"  the  General  exclaimed.  "  Even  his  staff 
unacquainted  with  our  dangerous  position. 
Hum  !  '  Questions  of  treaty,  and  Heaven  knows 
what  beside*  The  whole  thing's  a  puzzle.  A 
damnable  maze  in  which  I  wander  helpless. 
Poythress,  this  plunges  me  into  fresh  anxiety." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          307 

Rolfe  waited  respectfully  till  the  General 
emerged  from  brown  study. 

"  Captain/'  said  his  chief,  at  last,  "  I  want 
you  to  take  a  good  guide,  and  ride  to  the 
Governor's  camp,  bearing  him  a  letter  from 
me.  Whilst  there,  keep  on  the  lookout,  and 
return  as  soon  as  you  have  gained  anything 
of  what  I  need  to  know  —  you  understand  ?  " 

"  I  think  so,  sir.     And  I  am  to  start  —  ?  " 

"  Now,"  said  Lewis,  wearily. 

Rolfe  bowed  and  withdrew.  On  the  tent's 
portal,  he  was  recalled. 

"  You  may  need  to  inform  His  Excellency 
that  under  the  present  aspect  of  affairs  I  shall 
have  to  answer  personally  for  the  safety  of  any 
Englishman  coming  into  my  camp  from  his. 
Perhaps  that  will  convince  him  he  cannot 
pull  overstrong  at  the  curb  with  which  he 
rides  us." 

Saluting  once  more,  Poythress  retired.  By 
starlight  before  dawn  next  day  he  and  his  guide 
passed  the  pickets  of  the  other  camp.  The 
cheerful  challenge  of  the  men  spoke  of  stag- 
nant times  and  no  fear  of  attack  from  any 
quarter.  To  a  tent  over  which  the  King's  ban- 
ner dangled  sleepily,  Rolfe  directed  his  steps, 
to  be  informed  by  the  sentinel  posted  outside 
of  it  —  a  Virginian  known  to  him  —  that  my 
Lord  would  be  stirring  early,  since  he  had  given 
orders  to  allow  entry  to  my  Lord  of  Avenel, 
who  was  leaving  at  sunrise  to  return  to  Will- 


308          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

iamsburg,  and  was  to  carry  despatches  from 
His  Excellency. 

"  My  Lord  of  Avenel  ?  "  said  Rolfe,  recall- 
ing his  last  interview  with  that  ungracious 
nobleman.  "  Here  in  the  wilderness  ?  Why, 
'tis  a  Will  o'  the  Wisp  in  human  shape." 

"  His  lordship  reported  at  headquarters  some 
days  since,"  answered  the  gossiping  sentry. 
"  'Tis  not  known  at  what  point  he  crossed  the 
river,  but  one  thing  we  do  know,  that  his 
guides  left  him  here,  refusing  flatly  to  conduct 
his  lordship  back  again  ;  so  he  has  had  to  get 
others  for  the  return  journey.  'Twill  be  no 
loss  to  any  one  when  he  goes  !  But,  Captain, 
this  is  not  telling  you  I'm  glad  you  are  alive. 
I  heard  of  your  death,  sir,  as  did  every  one  in 
our  detachment,  but  here  you  are  looking  much 
as  you  did  in  Williamsburg,  when  I  saw  you 
there  last  spring.  And  we  are  all  wild  to  hear 
about  the  battle  of  the  tenth." 

"  I  did  not  sport  this  for  my  only  coat  when 
you  saw  me  last,  Jervis,"  said  Rolfe,  evading 
his  last  query.  "  Could  you  see  it  well,  you'd 
have  turned  me  back  for  a  common  vagabond. 
But  since  I'm  in  great  need  of  rest,  I'll  just 
drop  down  on  this  patch  of  moss  under  the 
pines  and  be  ready  to  deliver  my  despatches 
when  his  lordship  stirs." 

Jervis  went  on  his  beat,  and  Rolfe,  picking 
out  an  elastic  cushion,  sank  into  it  luxuriously. 
After  a  half  hour's  wait,  during  which  he  had 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          309 

much  ado  to  keep  his  eyes  open,  the  sound  of 
a  flint  striking  steel  inside  the  tent  caught  his 
attention,  followed  by  a  glow  of  faint  light 
from  a  waxen  taper.  Getting  upon  his  feet, 
Rolfe  drew  near  although  keeping  out  of  sight. 
Much  as  he  disliked  the  part  of  eavesdropper, 
his  duty  to  his  chief  demanded  that  he  should 
know  all  that  was  possible  about  the  real 
condition  of  Lord  Dunmore's  plans.  At  this 
moment,  a  man  in  riding-clothes  approached 
the  tent,  asked  for  admission,  and  was  requested 
to  enter. 

"  A  barbarous  hour  to  disturb  your  Excel- 
lency," said  the  newcomer.  "But  the  honour 
of  bearing  your  letters  to  her  ladyship  is  my 
excuse." 

"  I  finished  them  late  last  night,"  said  a 
drowsy  voice.  "  The  other  despatches  I  spoke 
of  are  in  this  packet.  And  I  believe  the  orders 
you  are  so  kind  as  to  promise  to  place  in  the 
hands  of  my  doughty  brother-in-arms,  General 
Lewis,  will  bring  that  obstinate  fellow  to 
obedience,  and  permanently  check  his  idea  of 
advance." 

"You  are  convinced  I  have  no  interruption 
to  fear  from  the  savages  ?  " 

"  Leave  them  to  me.  The  way  before  you 
is  as  clear  as  a  primrose  path,  from  them.  But, 
for  the  length  of  the  journey,  —  though  that  is 
no  bar  to  a  backwoods  traveller  so  efficient  as 
you  have  proved  yourself,  my  Lord,  —  what 


jio         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

tales  you  will  have  to  tell  in  the  clubs  at  home  ! 
I  confess  I  envy  you  being  rid  altogether  of 
this  country  and  the  people,  whom  I  detest. 
But  I  have  set  myself  to  break  their  spirit 
and,  at  whatever  cost,  I'll  do  it.  You  have 
here,  also,  my  order  to  Lewis  to  send  with 
you  as  escort  an  officer  —  you  mentioned,  I 
think,  preferring  your  young  kinsman  Poy- 
thress,  whom,  till  you  enlightened  us,  we  had 
fancied  killed  by  an  Indian  hatchet  some 
months  since." 

"  I  have  reason  to  believe  the  young  man 
would  be  pleased  to  accompany  me,"  said  an 
unsteady  voice.  "And  though  'tis  a  matter 
of  no  great  moment,  I  supposed — " 

"  Poythress,  or  another,"  interrupted  His  Ex- 
cellency, with  indifference.  "What  does  it 
matter  since  I'm  intending  to  send  all  of  those 
country  bumpkins  home  by  the  road  they 
came,  in  short  order?  Lewis  will  let  you  have 
Poythress,  certainly." 

"Thank  God,  he  will  not,"  meditated  the 
listener,  who  without  analysing  them  had  begun 
to  have  uncomfortable  sensations  creeping  in 
the  region  of  his  spine.  He  imagined,  though 
he  could  not  see  it,  something  sinister  in  the 
manner  of  his  would-be  relative. 

"  I  have  left  to  the  last,  your  Excellency," 
said  Avenei,  after  a  moment's  silence,  "  a  most 
painful  matter,  but  one  nearest  my  heart. 
When  you  asked  my  reasons  for  making  this 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          311 

forced  march  and  toilsome  journey  from  the 
Cheat  River  district  to  your  present  camp,  I 
could  not  at  first  bring  myself  to  confess  to 
a  family  disgrace.  But  your  confidence,  your 
generous  kindness  to  me,  will  not  allow  such  a 
matter  to  pass  untold." 

There  was  another  pause,  the  speaker  appar- 
ently overcome  by  emotion.  Then  Rolfe  heard 
unfolded  such  an  artfully  dressed  web  of  accu- 
sation against  Geoffry  Flower  as  filled  his  soul 
with  loathing.  What  was  alleged  in  general 
about  the  offender  was  supposed  to  date  far 
back  to  his  life  in  England.  The  specific 
charge  entitling  Flower  to  His  Excellency's  rep- 
rehension, was  a  letter  written  to  a  member  of 
Lewis'  staff,  betraying  certain  intentions  and 
movements  of  Dunmore's  toward  the  Indians. 

"  'Tis  impossible  !  "  cried  His  Excellency, 
with  choking  fury  in  his  tones.  "  Let  me 
call  —  " 

"  Oh  !  'tis  not  that  he  has  done  mischief  yet, 
but  that  he  should  have  wished  so  to  do," 
hastily  interrupted  one,  evidently  a  past  master 
in  the  art  of  fabrication.  "  And  to  prove  that 
he  knows  I  have  detected  his  evil-doing  and 
despise  it,  I  ask  your  lordship  to  recall  his 
avoidance  of  me  since  I  have  been  one  of  your 
military  family ;  nay,  the  open  insult  of  his 
manner  to  me  last  night  at  supper  with  your 
Excellency,  when  he  arose  and  left  the  table. 
But,  for  many  reasons,  I  beseech  your  clemency 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


for  him.  Rid  yourself  of  the  culprit,  if  you 
must,  but  place  him  where  he  will  have  a 
chance  to  live  down  his  offences.  He  is  but 
young,  my  Lord  —  " 

"  Enough,  Lord  Avenel,"  said  the  Gov- 
ernor, whose  one  effort  seemed  to  the  hearer 
to  be  to  compass  self-control.  "  We  will  dwell 
no  more  upon  a  subject  most  odious.  You 
will  leave  it  to  me  to  dispose  of  the  affairs  of 
my  staff-officers,  and  believe  that  I  am  quite 
competent  to  deal  with  them  as  they  merit. 
And  now,  since  you  have  to  use  all  your  hours 
of  daylight,  I  will  not  detain  you  longer  from 
the  start.  Adieu,  and  a  good  passage  to  you 
through  the  wilderness,  a  happy  landing  in 
Hymen's  toils,  and  safe  arrival  in  the  country 
of  civilisation.  Your  guides,  I  presume,  are 
satisfactory  ?  " 

"  I  have  secured  two  trappers,  who  will 
serve,  as  well,  to  supply  my  table  on  the 
march.  Since  you  have  assured  me  of  the  ces- 
sation of  hostilities  from  the  Indians,  I  can 
have  nothing  to  apprehend." 

"  Not  with  the  safe-conduct  I  have  given 
you,"  said  Dunmore,  significantly. 

When  the  visitor  had  exchanged  a  final  fare- 
well with  His  Excellency  and  left  the  tent,  it 
occurred  to  Rolfe  Poythress  to  follow  him. 
On  the  outskirts  of  the  camp  he  saw  a  small 
riding-party  drawn  up  ready  for  the  road,  con- 
sisting of  Fleury  and  a  couple  of  villainous- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          313 

looking  fellows,  half  French,  half  Indian,  who 
were  receiving  from  the  valet  instructions  in  his 
own  tongue.  As  they  rode  off,  Rolfe  rubbed 
his  hands  with  satisfaction. 

"  I  am  free  from  that  coil,  at  any  rate,"  he 
said  to  himself.  "  To  be  escort  to  such  a  gang 
were  hardly  my  notion  of  a  pleasuring.  But 
now  for  my  Lord,  and,  after  him,  to  greet  dear 
GeofFry  Flower  and  put  him  upon  his  guard 
against  a  malignant  enemy." 

Rolfe's  interview  with  His  Excellency,  tread- 
ing as  it  did  upon  the  heels  of  that  of  Lord 
Avenel,  found  the  Commander-in-chief  in  a 
humour  so  bitter  toward  all  created  things,  so 
full  of  indignation  over  the  spirited  letter  sent 
to  him  by  General  Lewis,  that  Rolfe  had  not 
a  happy  half  hour  in  the  great  man's  presence. 
But  in  the  end,  the  Governor,  appearing  to 
rally  and  reproach  himself  for  showing  too 
much  animus,  dismissed  the  Captain  with  orders 
to  take  rest  and  refreshment. 

"  I  had  thought  to  impose  upon  you  another 
mission,  Captain  Poythress,"  said  the  General- 
in-chief.  "  But  since  here  you  are,  here  you  may 
stay  till  after  to-morrow,  when  I  shall  have  an 
important  express  for  your  commander, —  one 
that  will  cool  his  hot  fancy  to  push  the  war 
in  the  enemy's  country,  and  to  shed  blood 
without  authority  from  his  superior." 

Extinguished  by  this  scathing  sarcasm,  Rolfe 
made  haste  to  find  GeofFry  Flower,  who,  sitting 


314          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

at  breakfast  in  the  mess-tent,  was  delighted  be- 
yond measure  at  the  apparition  of  the  blood- 
stained, travel-worn  ranger,  amid  their  group  of 
natty  redcoats.  The  officers,  when  Flower's 
warm  greeting  established  Rolfe's  identity,  re- 
ceived with  acclamation  the  hero  of  such  a 
summer  of  hard  fight  and  close  shaves  against 
peril  such  as  they  had  been  longing  in  vain  to 
experience.  They  listened  enviously,  while 
Rolfe,  urged  by  admiring  Flower,  modestly 
told  his  tale  of  skirmish,  siege,  and  battle. 
And  when  Geoffry,  seeing  his  friend's  fatigue, 
carried  him  off  to  his  own  tent  for  further  par- 
ley, Rolfe  could  not  understand  why  the  young 
Englishman  looked  at  him  from  head  to  foot 
with  a  sort  of  mysterious  interest. 

"What  is  it?"  he  asked  simply.  "Till  I 
saw  myself  in  a  tin  plate  of  maple  syrup  at 
mess  the  day  before  the  fight,  I  had  not  beheld 
this  ugly  phiz  in  weeks.  Perhaps  'tis  worse 
than  even  I  supposed  it." 

"  My  dear  Poythress,  you  are  the  hero  of 
the  camp,"  cried  Geoffry.  "  But  if  they  knew 
what  I  know,  you'd  be  Agamemnon  and  Ama- 
dis  de  Gaul  in  one  —  " 

"  My  dear  Flower,  your  imagination  runs 
away  with  you.  In  the  meantime,  I  have  that 
to  tell  you,  which,  unpleasant  as  it  is,  will  ad- 
mit of  no  delay.  Circumstances  have  brought 
to  my  knowledge  the  fact  that  your  uncle, 
Lord  Avenel  —  " 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         315 

"Yes,  my  uncle,  Lord  Avenel,"  repeated 
Flower,  breathlessly. 

"  —  has  been  guilty  of  outrageous  treachery 
to  one  whom  all  ties  of  blood  and  honour  call 
upon  him  to  protect  —  " 

"  You  know  it  then.  But  how  ?  "  exclaimed 
Geoffry,  puzzled. 

"  How,  I  cannot  explain  to  you,"  said  Rolfe, 
ashamed  at  the  part  he  had  been  forced  to 
play.  "I  can  only  say  that  I  believe  him  to 
mean  mischief — dire  mischief — " 

"What  again!"  shouted  Geoffry.  "Not 
another  word,  my  dear  fellow.  I  understand. 
While  I  have  strength  I'll  stand  by  you ;  and, 
unless  matters  go  dead  against  me,  between  us 
we'll  see  you  in  your  rightful  place.  Huzza ! 
We  will  win  yet ;  never  fear." 

Rolfe,  who  looked  at  him  in  stupefaction, 
thought  Geoffry  was  possessed. 

"  Look  here,  Flower,"  he  said  calmly. 
"  The  reason  why  I  didn't  tell  you  point 
blank  what  that  uncle  of  yours  said  about  you 
to  Lord  Dunmore,  was  because  I  overheard 
it ;  and  that  sort  of  business  is  not  the  kind  I 
deal  in.  But  if  you  must  know,  you  must. 
Avenel  was  plotting  to  get  you  disgraced  and 
sent  away  from  the  staff — and  his  chief 
ground  of  complaint  is  a  letter  you're  said 
to  have  written  to  somebody  in  our  camp, 
exposing  His  Excellency's  secret  dealings 
with  the  savages.  Farther  than  that  I  know 


316          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

nothing,  I  swear,  about  your  uncle's  scaly 
tricks.1' 

"  Oh  !  the  sneak,  the  liar,  that  I  blush  to 
call  an  uncle,"  cried  Flower,  whose  veins  were 
charged  with  wrath.  "  'Twas  that  Fleury  of 
his  who  intercepted  my  letter  to  you,  on  which 
slight  foundation  has  been  built  this  monstrous 
edifice.  I  thought  when  he  followed  me  here, 
'twas  to  hound  me  to  some  trouble  or  disgrace, 
He  dared  not  face  me  openly,  or  you.  Poy- 
thress,  but  for  a  promise  to  a  woman  that 
was  his  tool,  that  is  binding  on  me  during  her 
lifetime,  I  could  tell  you  why  that  rascal  has 
good  cause  to  wish  both  you  and  me  out  of  his 
way." 

"  Me  ?  "  said  the  Virginian.  "  I  cannot  so 
flatter  myself." 

"  My  word  for  it,  he  is  your  enemy,  too,  and 
for  good  reasons.  Luckily,  he  and  his  bravos 
are  well  ahead  of  you.  Oh  !  this  is  beyond 
credence.  But  believe  me,  should  my  General 
give  me  the  sack  upon  any  such  pretence  as 
that  alleged,  I'll  leave  him  gladly,  and  trust  to 
a  clean  record  to  right  me  before  the  world. 
To  say  truth,  I'm  sick  to  death  of  my  service 
and  my  master.  But  I  know  well  that  my 
orders  will  be  given  without  publicity.  My 
Lord  is  too  wise  to  openly  antagonise  one  who 
has  been  so  close  to  him,  at  the  present  crisis 
of  his  affairs,  when  he  stands  over  a  mine  your 
Virginians  are  ready  to  explode.  There,  you 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         317 

are  reeling  with  want  of  sleep,  man.  Take  my 
bed,  and  I'll  call  you  when  you're  needed." 

Rolfe  yielded,  because  he  could  not  keep 
awake.  The  exertions  of  body,  the  excitement 
of  mind,  following  his  convalescence,  had  fairly 
sapped  his  powers  of  endurance,  and  he  now 
rolled  like  a  log  into  Flower's  bunk,  and  slept 
profoundly. 

When  he  next  became  aware  of  matters  of 
every  day,  Flower  was  standing  beside  him, 
laughing,  while  Keys,  bringing  up  the  rear  with 
hot  water  and  a  change  of  clothes,  looked  like 
the  genius  of  old  England  transplanted  into 
western  wilds. 

"The  Seven  Sleepers  were  naught  beside 
you,  man,"  cried  Geoffry,  exploding  with 
mirth.  "  Do  you  know  that  you  have  not 
stirred  since  noon  yesterday,  and  here  it  is 
6  A.M.,  and  orders  are  that  you  are  to  accom- 
pany His  Excellency  on  his  grand  peace  mis- 
sion to  the  Indian  village.  Up,  stir  yourself, 
take  the  breakfast  Keys  will  give  you,  and  join 
us  outside,  where  I  have  told  your  man  to  have 
your  horse  in  readiness." 

Rolfe  sprang  out  of  bed,  and  hurried  to  do 
his  friend's  behest.  While  he  envied  Geoffry 
his  power  of  throwing  off  an  annoyance,  he 
could  not  but  confess  that  his  own  heart  sat 
lighter  upon  its  throne,  than  in  many  a  long 
day. 


XV 


WITHIN  a  short  distance  of  the  Indian 
town  of  Chillicothe,  Lord  Dunmore's 
party,  the  General  and  staff  equipped  in 
full-dress  uniform,  were  met  by  a  flag  of  truce 
with  the  request  that  their  escort  of  troops 
might  be  halted  at  that  point,  the  officers  alone 
presenting  themselves  before  the  council. 

The  Commander-in-chief  made  no  demur  to 
this  proposition,  feeling  evident  confidence  in 
the  favourable  disposition  toward  him  of  the 
foes  who  a  few  days  before  had  cut  down  his 
allies  in  bloody  combat. 

The  wigwams,  grouped  in  a  square,  sur- 
rounded four  communal  houses  built  of  logs, 
in  the  centre  of  which  arose  a  rotunda,  or 
council-house,  having  a  conical  roof  of  bark. 
In  this  chamber,  seated  upon  a  dais  stained 
white  and  red,  and  strewn  with  skins,  the  savage 
chiefs  were  arrayed  in  conclave.  On  either  side 
of  their  group  stood  an  eagle  carved  in  wood, 
and  around  the  hall  were  scattered  other  rude 
images  of  birds,  beasts,  and  warriors,  and  of 
the  sun  and  moon. 

Tall,  straight,  admirably  proportioned,  the 
318 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          319 

rich  red  brown  of  their  half-bare  bodies  undis- 
figured  by  war-paint,  their  heads  crowned  with 
eagle  plumes  and  hawk  wings,  the  forest  mon- 
archs  received  their  visitors  with  a  truly  royal 
dignity ;  the  strong  thoughtful  lines  of  their 
faces  betraying  anxiety  to  make  no  mistake 
in  conducting  a  negotiation  so  vital  to  their 
interests. 

Among  this  striking  group,  one  only  of  the 
leaders  who  had  been  conspicuous  at  the  battle 
of  Point  Pleasant  was  absent.  Logan,  who, 
"  for  magnanimity  in  war  and  greatness  in 
peace,  was  unsurpassed  among  his  nation,"  dis- 
dained to  be  seen  among  the  suppliants.  Away 
in  his  cabin  he  remained  secluded,  nursing  his 
grief  and  wrongs,  while  upon  the  King  of  the 
Confederated  Nations,  Cornstalk,  an  orator 
without  peer  among  them,  devolved  the  duty 
of  laying  the  Indians'  case  before  their  victors. 

It  was  well  known  by  those  present  that  this 
chief  had,  before  the  battle,  advocated  a  treaty 
with  the  whites,  but  upon  receiving  the  ulti- 
matum of  his  brothers  that  fight  they  would, 
had  changed  his  attitude.  Brandishing  the 
war-hatchet  above  his  head,  he  had  then  de- 
clared himself  ready  to  lead  them  to  battle, 
adding  the  threat  that  the  Indian  who  flinched 
in  the  encounter  should  perish  by  Cornstalk's 
hand.  It  was  also  well  known  to  everybody 
that  to  Cornstalk's  impetuous  dash  in  this  affair, 
the  Indians  owed  whatever  advantage  they  had 


320          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

attained.  Bitter  was  his  mortification  over  their 
defeat,  and,  upon  returning  from  the  battle,  he 
had,  in  council,  boldly  impugned  the  chiefs  for 
forcing  an  attack  that  had  cost  so  great  a  loss 
of  braves ;  ending  with  the  impassioned  cry : 
"And  now,  what  shall  we  do?  By  two  roads, 
the  Long  Knives  are  upon  us.  Shall  we  give 
them  fight  again  ?  " 

There  was  no  response,  and  Cornstalk  had 
burst  forth  anew  :  — 

"Speak,  brothers.  Shall  we  kill  our  squaws 
and  children,  and  then  let  the  whites  kill  us?" 

Another  silence,  which  the  leader  had  ended 
by  dashing  his  war-hatchet  violently  into  the 
war-post  in  the  centre  of  the  council,  and  de- 
claring he  would  now  offer  peace  to  Lord 
Dunmore. 

Cornstalk's  speech,  the  first  to  be  made  be- 
fore the  assembled  whites  and  Indians,  was 
brave,  feeling,  and  eloquent.  After  depicting 
Logan's  wrongs,  and  fearlessly  casting  the  re- 
sponsibility for  the  war  upon  the  threshold  of 
the  whites,  he  disclaimed  Lord  Dunmore's 
charge  that  the  Indians  had  failed  to  keep  their 
former  treaties,  and  had  proved  themselves 
mere  brutal  murderers.  In  ringing  tones,  he 
depicted  the  once  happy  and  prosperous  condi- 
tion of  his  people,  now  dispossessed  of  their 
lands  and  degraded  because  of  the  false 
promises  of  the  whites,  and  the  cunning  of 
traders  who  bought  their  submission  with 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         321 

firewater ;  and  so  wrought  upon  his  hearers  of 
both  sides  that,  when  he  ended,  the  officers 
surrounding  the  Governor  burst  into  loud 
applause. 

Following  other  speeches,  a  treaty  was  agreed 
upon,  ceding  all  Indian  hunting-grounds  south 
of  the  Ohio,  and  signed  by  those  present. 
But,  deeming  this  incomplete  without  the 
formal  assent  of  the  great  Logan,  and  anxious 
to  assure  the  goodwill  of  one  he  had  no  mind 
to  offend,  Lord  Dunmore  despatched  to  the 
quarters  of  the  implacable  warrior,  two  mes- 
sengers instructed  to  crave,  in  appropriate 
phrase,  his  cooperation  with  the  agreement. 
This  deputation,  consisting  of  Colonel  John 
Gibson  to  represent  the  Commander-in-chief, 
and  Captain  Rolfe  Poythress,  to  appear  for 
General  Lewis,  repaired  under  Indian  escort 
to  the  wigwam  of  the  illustrious  Mingo. 

Entering  the  hut  between  two  lines  of 
braves,  the  embassy  at  first  scarce  distin- 
guished, in  the  gloom  of  an  interior  lighted 
only  by  the  smoke  vent,  the  bent  form  and 
dejected  countenance  of  the  lonely  sachem,  who, 
offering  them  seats  upon  a  log  of  wood  oppo- 
site him,  greeted  his  guests  with  a  haughty, 
though  not  ungraceful,  gesture  of  welcome. 

Rolfe,  having  now  seen  Logan  under  divers 
aspects,  could  not  but  be  deeply  impressed 
with  his  present  expression  of  profound  melan- 
choly, the  lack-lustre  of  his  hollow  brilliant  eyes. 


322          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  So,  Captain,  we  are  met  again,"  said 
Logan,  addressing  him  first.  "  If  your  chief 
sent  you  to  me  because  you  are  an  enemy  I 
respect,  he  did  well.  Said  I  not  you  would 
survive  that  battle  ?  Aye,  and  many  more ; 
for  if  Logan  reads  the  future  right,  you  have  a 
high  destiny  before  you.  But  you  are  come 
upon  a  useless  errand,  if  you  think  to  make 
Logan  join  yonder  band  that  swears  friendship 
with  the  whites." 

Colonel  Gibson,  speaking  for  his  Com- 
mander, set  forth  in  courteous  terms  their 
reasons  for  being  unwilling  to  conclude  the 
matter  in  hand  without  the  consent  of  one  so 
high  in  his  Nation's  councils,  so  great  a  sol- 
dier, so  wise  a  man,  as  Logan.  To  these  com- 
pliments the  answer  was  cold  silence,  and  the 
two  envoys  had  begun  to  think  they  were  to  be 
honoured  with  no  further  notice  of  any  kind, 
when  the  chief,  rising  to  his  full  height  and 
extending  one  arm  with  tragic  vehemence, 
spoke  in  a  voice  trembling  with  emotion :  — 

"  I  appeal  to  any  white  man  to  say,  if  ever 
he  entered  Logan's  cabin  hungry,  and  he 
gave  him  not  meat ;  if  ever  he  came  cold  and 
naked,  and  he  clothed  him  not.  During  the 
course  of  the  last  long  and  bloody  war,  Logan 
remained  idle  in  his  cabin,  an  advocate  for 
peace.  Such  was  my  love  for  the  whites,  that 
my  countrymen  pointed  as  they  passed,  and 
said :  Logan  is  the  friend  of  white  men.  I 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         323 

had  even  thought  to  have  lived  with  you,  but 
for  the  injuries  of  one  man.  Colonel  Cresap, 
the  last  spring,  in  cold  blood,  and  unprovoked, 
murdered  all  the  relations  of  Logan,  not  even 
sparing  my  women  and  children.  There  runs 
not  a  drop  of  my  blood  in  the  veins  of 
any  living  creature.  This  called  on  me  for 
revenge.  I  have  sought  it.  I  have  killed 
many.  I  have  fully  glutted  my  vengeance. 
For  my  country,  I  rejoice  at  the  beams  of 
peace.  But  do  not  harbour  a  thought  that  mine 
is  the  joy  of  fear.  Logan  never  felt  fear.  He 
will  not  turn  on  his  heel  to  save  his  life.  Who 
is  there  to  mourn  for  Logan  ?  Not  one." 

So  ending,  the  unhappy  man  dropped  again 
into  his  former  brooding  attitude,  and,  although 
the  trace  of  tears  was  in  his  keen  eyes,  no 
other  words  would  he  vouchsafe. 

The  envoys,  waiting  for  a  time  in  respectful 
silence,  arose,  and,  as  they  passed  again  between 
the  double  file  of  Logan's  followers,  the  im- 
pulsive movement  of  a  young  brave  toward 
Poythress  sent  the  Captain's  hand  to  seek  his 
pistol,  relinquished  when  he  became  aware  that 
this  was  the  friend  of  Logan  the  Virginian  had 
let  go  from  beneath  his  knife  at  Point  Pleasant. 
The  Indian,  seizing  Rolfe's  hand,  shook  it  with 
grateful  phrases,  offering  at  the  same  time  the 
gift  of  a  pipe  carved  by  himself  and  taken  from 
the  pouch  worn  at  his  waist. 

Logan's  speech,  reported  by  Gibson  to  Lord 


324         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

Dunmore,  and  put  upon  record  at  the  time 
as  a  splendid  example  of  aboriginal  oratory, 
brought  to  an  end  these  important  proceed- 
ings between  the  Indians  and  the  whites.  The 
King  of  the  Northern  Confederacy  and  his 
associates,  acting  without  Logan,  signed  the 
treaty  of  peace  with  the  subjects  of  King  George 
that  was  to  lift  from  the  inhabitants  of  the 
western  frontier  an  intolerable  burden  of  alarm. 
The  battle  of  Point  Pleasant,  fierce  and  fatal 
to  both  sides,  had  finished  the  war  gloriously 
enough  for  the  Virginians,  although  they 
carried  out  of  it  such  bitter  anger  against  the 
ally  who  had  failed  them  as  to  poison  their 
memories  of  success. 

That  night  all  was  in  happy  motion  in  Lord 
Dunmore' s  camp.  The  men,  believing  them- 
selves about  to  be  disbanded,  began  prepara- 
tions for  the  march  on  the  return  home. 

Geoffry  Flower,  who  had  received  no  other 
indications  of  his  chief's  displeasure,  called  into 
the  great  man's  presence,  was  ordered  curtly  to 
accompany  Captain  Poythress  back  to  Lewis' 
camp  and  there  announce  the  approaching  visit 
of  the  Commander-in-chief  for  a  conference 
with  the  Virginian  General  concerning  the 
future  movements  of  the  army. 

"And  by  the  way,  Captain  Flower,  should 
you  care  to  consider  yourself  detached  from 
duty  upon  my  staff,"  remarked  my  Lord,  casu- 
ally, as  an  after-thought,  "  you  may  join  Gen- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         325 

eral  Lewis,  and,  proceeding  to  Williamsburg, 
await  my  further  orders  there." 

"  Very  good,  my  Lord,"  answered  the  young 
man,  whose  utterance  was  choked.  Even  after 
they  were  en  route  (he,  Rolfe,  the  servant  Keys, 
and  Rolfe's  guide)  he  could  not  force  himself 
to  put  his  grievance  into  words. 

To  be  thus  dismissed  like  a  lackey,  whose 
feelings  his  master  desires  to  spare !  For  this 
he  had  borne  the  whims  and  moods  of  his 
General,  served  him,  sworn  by  him  —  oh,  'twas 
galling,  and  none  the  less  so  because  antici- 
pated !  His  indignation  against  his  crafty 
uncle  who  had  taken  such  enormous  pains  thus 
to  belittle  him,  his  ambition  to  repay  that  wor- 
thy in  kind,  rendered  him  incapable  of  any 
conversation  with  his  comrade. 

"  What  did  you  say  ?  "  asked  Rolfe's  voice 
at  last,  as  they  jogged  along  through  the  scented 
darkness  of  a  pine  wood. 

"  Did  I  speak  ?  "  exclaimed  Geoffry.  "  If 
so,  'twas  the  utterance  of  inward  prayer  that 
you  and  I  may  get  even  with  my  Uncle  Ave- 
nel." 

"The  sooner  the  better,  say  I,"  laughed 
Rolfe,  glad  of  a  break  in  the  poor  chap's  dis- 
mal reverie. 

The  party  travelled  slowly  through  the 
night,  Rolfe  hardly  believing  that  he  need  no 
longer  be  on  the  watch  against  savage  attacks ; 
that  the  whoop  and  yell,  the  maddening  sound 


326          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

of  Indian  drum,  were  silenced;  the  great  forest 
no  more  the  lair  of  human  wild  animals,  lurk- 
ing for  a  spring.  But  as  daylight  stealing 
around  them  brought  to  view  a  solitary  defile 
of  which  the  trees,  blazing  in  October  hues, 
bore  marks  indicating  to  their  guide  that  they 
were  within  a  few  miles  of  their  destination,  a 
long  cry  of  mortal  terror  issuing  from  a  thicket 
just  ahead  smote  on  their  ears. 

Spurring  onward,  Rolfe  and  Flower  rode 
into  a  glade  where  a  man  in  his  shirt-sleeves, 
bareheaded,  his  hands  tied  behind  him,  and 
a  rope  around  his  neck,  was  standing  beneath 
the  limb  of  a  stalwart  oak,  in  custody  of  a 
party  of  rangers  wearing  uniform  of  Andrew 
Lewis*  troops. 

In  the  executioner,  Rolfe  at  once  recognised 
the  sergeant  of  a  company  that  had  gone  into 
the  fight  beside  him  at  Point  Pleasant ;  and, 
in  the  victim,  both  young  men  saw,  with  a  thrill 
of  horror,  their  enemy,  my  Lord  of  Avenel ! 

"  Stop,  stop,  Long  !  "  shouted  Poythress, 
dashing  up,  ahead.  "  There  is  some  mistake. 
I  know  this  man.  Untie  his  hands." 

"If  you  do,  Cap'n,"  answered  the  Sergeant, 
reluctantly,  <f  perhaps,  you'll  be  luckier  than 
I  have  been  in  getting  out  of  him  what'll  save 
his  neck." 

"  I  have  nothing  to  tell,"  shrieked  Avenel, 
despairingly  clutching  at  the  newcomers. 
"  They  are  murdering  me  on  suspicion,  as  they 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion         327 

murdered  my  two  guides — "  and  he  broke 
into  a  babel  of  lamentations  and  abject  prayers 
for  salvation. 

"  Of  what  do  you  accuse  him  ?  "  said  Rolfe. 

"  Of  being  a  spy  and  go-between  of  Lord 
Dunmore  and  the  savages,"  answered  Long, 
sturdily.  "  Else  what  would  he  be  doing 
here,  in  plain  clothes,  in  such  company  as  that 
Frenchman  we've  got  tied  up  in  yonder  thicket, 
and  those  half-breed  scamps  that  we  knew  to  be 
murderers  ?  Why,  we  caught  this  fellow  burn- 
ing papers  in  our  campfire,  Cap'n,  and  the  men 
we  hung  confessed  they  came  straight  out  o' 
Dunmore's  headquarters.  I  tell  you,  the  way 
our  General  and  every  man  in  our  army  feels 
toward  Lord  Dunmore  now,  'twouldn't  be 
safe  for  my  Lord  himself  to  venture  down  Andy 
Lewis'  way.  If  that  officer  is  a  friend  of  yours," 
he  added,  casting  upon  Geoffry's  red  coat  a 
glance  of  hardly  disguised  intimidation,  "  he'd 
better  turn  right  round,  and  ride  back  where 
he  belongs,  instead  o'  goin'  on  where  it  ain't 
safe  just  now  for  Britishers  of  any  kidney." 

"  I  answer  for  my  friend,"  said  Poythress, 
imperiously.  "  But  the  prisoner,  Long.  Let 
me  question  him  a  bit." 

"  All  right,  sir,"  said  the  Sergeant,  stepping 
back,  but  still  holding  the  rope  in  his  hand. 
"  You'll  find  him  mortal  obstinate  and  a  bad 
un,  through  and  through.  His  spies  told  us, 
before  we  hung  'em,  that  he  and  his  man  were 


328          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

plottin'  to  decoy  into  the  woods  an  officer  from 
Lewis'  headquarters  whom  they  were  well  paid 
to  put  out  of  the  way." 

"  Is  this  true  ? "  Rolfe  asked,  fiercely,  re- 
membering what  he  had  heard  in  Lord  Dun- 
more's  tent. 

"  Pardon,  pardon,"  screamed  the  wretch, 
guilt  written  upon  his  face. 

"  Ask  him  if  he's  got  any  more  papers  hid, 
Cap'n,"  said  the  Sergeant.  "  'Pears  like  I  can't 
be  satisfied  without  hangin'  him,  unless  I  get 
somethin'  to  show  for  my  affair."  And  so  say- 
ing, he  gave  a  persuasive  tug  to  the  rope. 
"  Better  leave  us  to  settle  him,  Cap'n,  and  you 
two  go  your  ways." 

A  howl  from  Avenel  arose.  Frantically  ad- 
juring Flower  to  intercede  for  him  with  Poy- 
thress,  beseeching  Poythress  to  save  him,  and 
full  justice  should  be  done,  he  directed  Long 
to  look  in  the  inner  lining  of  his  saddle  for  a 
roll  of  papers,  "  the  only  ones,  before  God," 
remaining  in  his  possession. 

Long,  bounding  away  to  the  little  copse 
where  the  horses  were  secured,  soon  returned 
with  the  documents  in  question.  Turning  them 
over  and  over  with  a  disgruntled  air,  he  finally 
laid  the  roll  into  Poythress'  hand. 

"  I  can't  make  head  or  tail  of  it,  sir,"  he  said, 
discontentedly.  "  But  since  I  promised  this  fel- 
low his  life,  if  he  would  give  'em  up,  maybe  you'll 
see  whether  the  game  is  worth  the  candle." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          329 

"  Ask  Geoffry  —  he  knows  what  they're 
worth  to  you,"  cried  the  prisoner,  in  mortal 
dread  that  his  affair  was  again  going  the  wrong 
way. 

"  Flower  ?  "  said  Rolfe,  in  astonishment. 
"  What  has  he  to  do  with  it  ?  "  and  he  looked 
his  friend  full  in  the  eyes. 

The  suspicious  Sergeant,  catching  the  pris- 
oner's glance  of  intelligence  with  the  British 
officer,  also  looked  narrowly  at  Flower.  Not 
a  muscle  of  Geoffry's  face  moved  under  this 
mute  interrogatory ;  not  a  shadow  fell  upon  his 
candid  gaze,  until  he  turned  to  the  craven  who 
sued. to  him  for  pity,  with  a  lightning  flash  of 
contempt. 

"  Poythress  knows  nothing  yet  of  your 
scoundrel  work  against  him,"  said  he;  "and  I 
can  only  tell  him  and  my  friend  the  Sergeant 
here,  that  the  worst  I  know  of  you  has  had  to 
do  with  family  affairs  that,  for  the  sake  of  all 
concerned,  should  be  settled  privately  between 
Poythress  and  yourself." 

"  Give  me  your  prisoner,  Long,"  said  Rolfe, 
impulsively. 

"All  right,  Cap'n,  if  you  choose  to  take  it 
on  yourself.  That  oily  French  fellow  we've 
got  gagged,  might's  well  go  to  your  share, 
too ;  but  I  can  trust  you,  sir,  if  you  get  any- 
thing out  of  them  that  has  to  do  with  the 
Indian  business,  you'll  give  me  credit  for  it 
with  our  General.  So  here  you  are,  sir,"  — 


330          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

handing  over  the  rope,  —  "an*  me  an*  my  men 
will  just  be  gettin'  on." 

The  revulsion  was  too  much  for  Avenel. 
With  a  scream  like  a  woman's  he  fell  forward 
on  his  face,  and  when  they  lifted  him,  his  cruel 
heart  had  ceased  to  beat. 

*  *  *  *  * 

They  made  a  grave  for  him  under  the  oak- 
tree  that  had  so  nearly  been  the  scene  of  a 
more  gruesome  tragedy,  setting  free  the  French 
servant  to  find  his  way  where  he  would. 
Fleury,  protesting  innocence  of  complicity  with 
my  Lord's  various  ill  designs,  pleaded  with  them 
pitifully  not  to  leave  him  alone  in  the  woods 
with  the  mound  covering  his  master,  and  that 
branch  away  back  in  the  thicket  bearing  such 
dreadful  fruit.  But  Rolfe  and  Geoffry  were 
inexorable,  and  forsook  the  fat  Frenchman, 
crying  like  a  child;  though  as  M.  Fleury  was 
seen  in  those  parts  some  years  later  engaged  in 
dispensing  whiskey  and  trinkets  to  the  Indians, 
it  is  presumed  he  made  the  best  of  a  difficult 
situation. 

The  campaign  in  the  west  brought  to  an 
end  by  a  furious  quarrel  between  General  Lewis 
and  the  English  Commander-in-chief,  the  Pro- 
vincial troops  set  out  for  their  homes,  Rolfe 
Poythress  quitting  his  General  and  making  all 
speed  to  the  Potomac,  where  he  was  on  fire  to 
be.  Flower,  with  whom  he  parted  when  the 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion  331 

latter  went  on  to  Williamsburg,  and  to  whom 
he  had  kept  very  quiet  about  his  intended  ac- 
tion in  the  matter  of  Lord  Avenel's  succes- 
sion, had  his  own  suspicions  regarding  the 
outcome  of  Rolfe's  visit  to  his  uncle.  Hugh 
Poythress,  sitting  alone  in  his  library,  was 
surprised  by  the  impetuous  onslaught  of  his 
nephew,  —  now  grown  broad  and  hearty  under 
the  healing  influence  of  the  woods,  —  who, 
laying  before  him  the  whole  story  of  Avenel's 
wretched  death  and  lonely  burial,  told  also  the 
discovery  of  his  own  claim  to  the  family  title. 
And,  before  Colonel  Poythress  could  make 
comment  upon  these  surprising  facts,  the  young 
man,  glowing  with  love  and  loyalty,  declared 
that  never,  no  never,  could  he  consent  to  oc- 
cupy a  place  a  thousand  times  better  and  more 
nobly  filled  by  his  honoured  uncle,  for  so  he 
must  always  call  him. 

cc  But  my  dear,  my  dear,"  protested  the 
Colonel,  tears  coming  into  his  eyes.  "  What 
you  propose  is  beautiful,  but  impossible.  If 
you  are  the  son  of  my  Cousin  Percy,  no  power 
under  heaven  could  make  me  Lord  Avenel." 

"  But  there  is  only  this  to  prove  it,"  cried 
Rolfe,  drawing  out  of  his  breast  pocket  Mrs. 
Judith's  statement.  "And,  this  destroyed,  who 
is  there  to  dispossess  you  ?  " 

There  was  a  little  autumn  fire  of  bark  and 
pine-cones  burning  on  the  hearth.  Rolfe,  ad- 
vancing toward  it,  held  out  the  paper  which 


332          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

he  was  about  to  drop  into  the  flames,  when 
his  uncle,  making  a  stride  toward  him,  snatched 
it  from  his  grasp. 

"  Do  you  know  what  you  are  about  ? "  said 
Hugh  Poythress,  hotly.  "  You  are  playing 
with  my  honour.  Once  convinced  of  the  truth 
of  its  contents,  does  it  seem  to  you  that  the 
destruction  of  this  paper  would  make  any  dif- 
ference in  my  action  ?  I  forbid  you  to  destroy 
it,  now  or  hereafter.  I  shall  at  once  set  to 
work  to  have  the  story — that  I  have  no  reason 
to  doubt  —  investigated.  If 'tis  true,  as  I  said 
before,  all  the  King's  horses  and  all  the  King's 
men  cannot  make  me  put  myself  in  the  mean 
position  of  a  claimant  who  knows  his  claim  to 
be  a  false  one.  My  dear  lad,  if  I  speak  with 
heat,  'tis  not  because  I  fail  to  be  touched  by 
your  love  and  deference." 

"  You  may  do  as  you  like  then,"  cried  Rolfe, 
as  obstinate  on  his  side;  "but  rest  assured,  my 
mind  also  is  fixed.  And  I  may  as  well  tell  you, 
sir,  that  I'm  going  to  enlist  for  the  war  against 
the  Crown.  To  my  thinking,  'tis  the  right 
cause,  the  only  cause  for  a  true  American,  and 
such  I  shall  ever  be.  I'd  like  to  see  the  House 
of  Lords  letting  in  a  fellow  of  my  stripe  to  sit 
among  them;  and  I'd  like  to  see  myself  want- 
ing to  get  in !  For  you,  'tis  different ;  and 
should  the  war  rage  a  dozen  years,  'twould 
not  alter  my  respect  for  your  convictions.  So 
there,  Uncle  Poythress,  you  have  my  ultima- 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          333 

turn.  Believe  me  when  I  say  that  I  give  up, 
without  a  pang,  something  I  never  dreamed  of 
possessing  till  a  few  days  since —  something  I'm 
not  fit  for,  do  not  covet,  nay,  will  not  have. 
With  all  my  heart  I  urge  you  to  believe  that  I 
speak  simple  truth/' 

The  Colonel  sighed  heavily. 

"  What  you  tell  me  about  your  intention  of 
joining  the  opposition  is  no  surprise.  Is  not 
my  own  Hughey,  since  his  late  bout  with  the 
Indians,  ever  chafing  to  get  leave  from  me  to 
volunteer  in  the  Virginian  militia  ?  Well,  well, 
the  world  is  turned  upside  down !  But,  al- 
though I'm  touched,  I'm  not  convinced  by 
you,  Master  Poythress.  'Twould  require  many 
months  of  thought  over  the  matter  to  move  me 
to  your  side.  What  I  propose  to  do  is  this. 
For  the  present,  we  will  admit  no  outsider  into 
knowledge  of  our  family  affairs.  I  will  devote 
myself  to  close  investigation  of  the  facts ;  and, 
as  for  you,  let  us  see  if  at  the  end  of,  say,  three 
years,  you  still  remain  of  your  present  inten- 
tion to  renounce  the  claim." 

"  Three  years  !  What  may  not  happen  in 
three  years,"  said  Rolfe,  with  the  discontent  of 
youth. 

"  Three  years  !  "  echoed  Madam  Poythress, 
coming,  followed  by  her  daughters,  into  the 
library,  from  the  French  window  open  upon 
the  lawn.  "  My  dearest  Rolfe,  it  has  seemed 
that,  since  you  left  us !  Let  me  give  you  a 


334         A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

hug  and  a  kiss  of  gratitude  and  a  welcome  to 
our  hero  from  the  wars/' 

Betty,  who  came  next,  was  in  royal  beauty. 
When  she  stepped  into  the  room  walled  with 
dull  volumes,  it  was  as  if  meadow  larks  were 
singing  on  a  joyous  day  in  spring.  The  rich 
bloom  of  her  cheeks  deepened,  as  she  advanced 
and  offered  him  her  hand ;  whereat  arose  up 
in  Rolfe,  once  more,  his  old  intense  delight  in 
her.  It  was  of  no  use  remembering  her  broken 
engagement  with  Avenel,  that,  when  out  of  her 
presence,  had  seemed  to  him  a  perpetual  bar 
between  them.  As  usual,  the  spell  of  her  radi- 
ant personality  held  every  thought  of  reproof 
of  her  in  abject  check. 

But  what  ailed  little  May  ?  What  could 
account  for  the  child's  pale  looks  and  want  of 
animation  ?  He  missed  his  delightful  com- 
rade, his  naive  adviser; then  recalled  what  Aunt 
Poythress  had  once  said,  about  Betty's  beauty 
at  fifteen  being  a  thing  of  doubt. 

"  All  girls,"  had  observed  the  matron,  "  are 
apt  to  go  through  a  transition  stage,  when  their 
friends  are  uncertain  whether  or  not  they  will 
turn  out  good  looking/'  Too  bad,  dainty 
May  should  succumb  to  a  "  transition  stage  "  ! 
Next  it  occurred  to  him  she  was  feeling  the 
reaction  of  the  strain  of  Fort  Shannon  and 
her  heroic  act;  and  a  great  tenderness  for  the 
little  maid  possessed  his  heart.  Kissing  her  in 
brotherly  fashion,  he  held  her  hand  in  his  while 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          335 

they  were  talking.  Hughey,  who  now  ran  in, 
added  to  the  family  chorus  of  questions,  praises, 
congratulations  poured  upon  their  warrior  re- 
turned. When,  at  last,  there  was  a  lull  in  this 
torrent  of  chat,  Colonel  Poythress  claimed  the 
attention  of  his  family. 

"  Now  that  you  have  all  had  your  chance, 
my  ladies,  and  my  young  gentleman/'  he  be- 
gan jocularly,  "perhaps  you  will  permit  the 
head  of  the  family  to  put  in  one  word.  But 
what  am  I  saying  ?  'Tis  Rolfe,  not  I,  who 
turns  out  to  be  head  of  this  family.  For  I 
have  to  announce  to  you  the  very  recent  death, 
from  heart  failure,  in  the  woods  of  the  Ohio, 
of  our  Cousin  Avenel." 

Betty  gave  a  little  shiver  and  drew  behind 
her  mother. 

"  And  of  a  wonderful  series  of  events,  like  a 
fairy  tale  indeed,  leading  up  to  the  culmination 
that  Rolfe  here,  our  dear  intimate,  and  loyal 
kinsman,  is,  by  right,  Alan  Poythress,  the  son 
of  Percy  Avenel,  and,  to  my  belief,  fully  en- 
titled to  go  across  the  sea  and  take  his  place  in 
the  Castle  of  our  fathers.  But  —  no  interrup- 
tions, please  —  the  young  man  is  wilful  and 
recalcitrant.  He  is  full  of  objections  to  the 
glory  thrust  upon  him.  He  is  a  Provincial  of 
the  Provincials,  a  would-be  Continental  soldier, 
and  follower  of  our  neighbour  of  Mount  Ver- 
non.  And  lastly,  it  is  his  urgent  wish  that  /, 
knowing  him  to  be  what  he  is,  should  take  the 


336          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

prize  that  will  leave  him  nameless  and  obscure 
—  which  I  flatly  decline  to  do.  Now,  wife, 
now,  children,  judge  between  us — which  is 
right  ? " 

Madam  Poythress,  betwixt  agitation  at  these 
announcements,  and  a  vain  attempt  to  think 
over  all  sides  of  the  question  at  once,  became 
quite  hysterical.  Betty,  in  whose  cheeks  burned 
twin  roses,  would  not  look  up  or  speak. 
Hughey,  after  a  movement  toward  Rolfe, 
bounded  back  to  the  side  of  his  father's  chair 
and  stood  with  an  arm  around  his  sire's  neck, 
gravely  pondering. 

Matoaca,  who  had  slipped  her  hand  out  of 
Rolfe's,  was  the  only  one  who  found  speech 
in  comment. 

"  If  I  were  Rolfe,"  she  said,  weighing  her 
words,  "  I  should  do  what  Rolfe  has  done. 
But  oh  !  father,  'tis  you  that  are  in  the  right." 

"You  see,  Rolfe,"  resumed  the  Colonel, 
smiling,  "  the  matter,  having  gone  from  us  into 
a  higher  Court,  has  been  decided  by  a  cherub. 
Let  us  say  no  more.  'Tis  my  opinion  that 
even  a  week  hence,  Lord  Avenel,  here,  will 
look  at  the  matter  with  very  different  eyes." 

Presently,  when  Rolfe  found  himself  alone 
with  Betty,  the  girl,  with  an  impetuous  move- 
ment, lifted  his  brown  sinewy  hand  in  hers  and 
kissed  it  with  a  tender  grace. 

"  Let  me  thank  you  for  myself,  cousin," 
she  said.  "I  —  for  good  reasons  —  could  not 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          337 

speak  before  the  family.  But  because  I  am 
cast  in  a  lighter  mould  than  the  rest  of  you  — 
not  a  heroine  like  our  splendid  little  May  —  I 
would  not  have  you  think  me  unable  to  appre- 
ciate— "  her  voice  broke,  and  she  could  say 
no  more. 

"  Betty ! "  he  cried,  melted  to  the  heart  by 
her  beauty,  her  tribute,  her  unwonted  mood  of 
softness.  "  If  what  I  would  renounce  were 
worth  anything  to  me,  'twould  be  that  I  might 
lay  it  at  the  feet  of  the  loveliest  lady  of  my 
acquaintance." 

"  No,  no,  dear  Rolfe,"  said  the  girl,  suffused 
with  shame  and  contrition.  "  Do  not  think, 
if  I  yielded  once  to  an  ambition  that  cost  me 
dear,  I  shall  ever  again  be  tempted  by  it. 
Your  feeling  for  me  has  been  a  boy's  fancy, 
and  mine  for  you  is  only  the  sisterly  love  of 
one  who  has  learned,  if  late,  to  value  what  you 
represent.  You  are  the  pride  of  our  family, 
now,  and  will  be  its  head ;  and  we  shall  look 
for  you  to  win  more  honours  for  us  as  you  go. 
But  you  and  I  were  not  meant  for  one  another, 
cousin,  even  if — " 

"  Even  if  what?"  he  said,  his  heart  beating 
fiercely  as  he  drew  nearer  to  her,  and  strove  to 
look  into  her  eyes. 

"  Even  if  my  heart  were  mine  to  give,"  she 
answered,  faltering,  then  burst  into  a  passion 
of  hot  tears. 

It  was  all  over  then.     Rolfe  knew  her  secret. 


33  8  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

"  Oh,  my  darling,  my  darling ! "  he  said. 
"  God  knows  I  would  help  you  to  bear  your 
trouble  if  I  could." 

"  I  must  live  it  down,'*  she  answered  drearily. 
"'Tis  my  right  punishment  for  what  I  did 
deliberately.  Let  me  go  to  my  room,  now, 
cousin ;  and  try  to  think  of  me  kindly,  but  as 
never  more  than  —  " 

"Always  the  fairest,  the  dearest  —  "he 
broke  in,  enthusiastically ;  but  with  a  sad 
smile,  she  walked  away  from  him. 

Here  went  out  with  a  final  flicker  in  the 
socket  the  flame  so  long  burning  on  the  altar 
of  Rolfe  Poythress'  young  manhood  —  a  flame 
nothing  in  life  could  ever  rekindle. 

Some  time  later,  in  recognition  of  his  gallant 
behaviour  at  Point  Pleasant  and  elsewhere,  he 
received  a  commission  as  Colonel  of  Virginian 
Volunteers,  and  in  due  time  marched  north- 
ward to  fight  under  his  old  friend  the  new 
Commander-in-chief  of  the  Confederated  Col- 
onies. 

By  that  date,  Lord  Dunmore's  pranks  with 
Virginia  had  culminated  in  the  affair  of  the 
Powder  Magazine  at  Williamsburg ;  when, 
fearing  the  just  wrath  of  the  people,  the  Royal 
Governor  had  escaped  from  his  palace  to  take 
refuge  aboard  the  man-of-war,  Fowey,  lying  off 
Yorktown.  His  lordship's  subsequent  achieve- 
ments on  Virginian  soil  may  be  rapidly  reviewed. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          339 

Urgently  appealing  to  his  friends  to  aid  him, 
he  organised  black  troops  (as  he  had  been 
accused  of  convoking  Indian  allies),  offering 
their  freedom  to  all  slaves  who  would  come  to 
his  support ;  proclaimed  martial  law ;  played 
havoc  with  the  shores  of  the  Chesapeake  Bay, 
and  along  Virginian  rivers  ;  fought,  and  was  de- 
feated by,  the  Provincial  defenders  at  Great 
Bridge ;  and  started  the  great  fire  of  Norfolk, 
continued  by  the  Provincial  troops  themselves. 
In  July,  1776,  when  intrenched  at  Given's 
Island,  on  the  west  shore  of  the  Chesapeake, 
he  was  attacked  in  his  ships,  cannonaded,  and 
put  to  rout  by  no  less  a  foeman  than  General 
Andrew  Lewis  of  the  Virginian  troops,  who, 
by  driving  him  forever  from  the  soil  of  Vir- 
ginia, not  only  settled  their  old  score  on  the 
Ohio,  but  obtained  that  concession  of  Provi- 
dence—  a  balance  of  justice.  A  few  days 
before  this,  on  the  fourth  of  July,  1776,  the 
independence  of  America  upon  England  had 
been  declared. 

These  great  events  were  to  the  family  at  Vue 
de  1'Eau  merged  into  the  minor  distress  of  the 
loss  of  their  beloved  home  by  a  firebrand 
applied  by  one  of  Lord  Dunmore's  gangs  of 
drunken  soldiery  sent  ashore  from  his  ship  in 
the  Potomac  to  destroy  the  dwelling  of  the 
arch-rebel  against  the  Crown,  for  which  it  had 
been  mistaken. 

The  family,  retiring  to  an  overseer's  house  at 


34°          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

some  distance  from  the  site  of  their  former  man- 
sion, passed  the  opening  years  of  the  Revolution 
in  those  narrow  quarters.  Here  they  lived,  as 
the  Colonel  desired  to  do,  in  sad  and  dignified 
seclusion ;  from  time  to  time  receiving  letters 
of  sympathy  and  kindness  from  their  kinsman 
who  wore  blue  and  buff,  as  well  as  from  him, 
in  scarlet,  Geoffry  Flower.  The  latter,  trans- 
ferred immediately  upon  his  return  to  Williams- 
burg  to  a  command  in  one  of  his  Majesty's 
regiments  at  the  north,  had  been  fighting 
through  the  war  almost  as  continuously  as  had 
Colonel  Rolfe  Poythress  on  the  other  side. 


XVI 

T  T ALLEY  FORGE  !  A  bitter  winter,  the 
y  little  starved  American  army  of  less  than 
six  thousand  men  holding  out  against  a 
great,  splendidly  equipped  force  of  British  of 
three  times  its  number  !  Sir  William  Howe 
hesitating,  debating  how  and  when  to  follow 
up  the  successes  or  his  arms.  Inside  of  Phila- 
delphia, fiddling,  dancing,  dining,  wining,  the 
English  officers  indulging  themselves  in  every 
whim  of  luxurious  fancy  for  amusement.  In 
the  headquarters  of  the  American  camp,  a 
Commander  who  bore  in  his  own  indomitable 
person  the  concentrated  cares  of  the  whole 
struggling  nation.  Lying  upon  the  earth,  a 
mantle  of  snow,  tracked  with  blood  from  the 
naked  feet  of  freemen  who  had  marched  over 
it.  On  the  2jd  of  December,  Washington 
reported  to  Congress  that  he  had  in  camp 
2898  soldiers  unfit  for  duty  because  barefoot 
and  otherwise  naked.  A  little  while  before 
this,  two  brigades  had  been  near  mutiny  for 
want  of  food.  As  the  winter  progressed,  the 
men,  lacking  blankets,  had  had  to  "  sit  up  all 
night  by  fires,  instead  of  taking  comfortable 

34* 


Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 


rest  in  a  natural  and  common  way/'  For 
want  of  horses  and  oxen,  men  harnessed  them- 
selves to  sledges  and  wagons,  dragging  into 
camp  necessary  supplies  for  the  hospitals  — 
tents  made  of  plaited  boughs  —  wherein  many 
sick  lay  upon  the  frozen  ground  because  there 
was  no  hay  to  serve  them  as  beds.  These 
dreadful  distresses  of  the  army  made  the  war- 
cloud  lower  as  it  had  never  lowered  before. 

The  household  and  military  family  of  the 
American  Commander-in-chief  shared,  to  the 
full,  the  trials  of  the  hour. 

At  this  time,  when  American  affairs  seemed 
at  their  worst,  Colonel  Rolfe  Poythress  of  the 
Virginian  Line,  occupying  a  hut  near  the  little 
stone  farmhouse  of  the  Quaker,  Isaac  Potts, 
serving  as  headquarters  for  the  Commander-in- 
chief,  was  again  disturbed  by  the  suggestion 
of  his  English  title  and  estates. 

Madam  Washington,  who,  arriving  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1778,  to  share  her  husband's  fortunes  in 
camp,  had  just  parted  with  Rolfe's  kinspeople 
at  Vue  de  1'Eau,  told  him  a  surprising  piece  of 
news.  A  windfall  of  inheritance  coming  to 
Hugh  Poythress  through  the  death  of  a  cousin 
in  Hampshire,  had  decided  the  good  Colonel 
to  go  over  to  England  with  his  family,  and 
take  possession  of  the  fair  manor  thus  unex- 
pectedly acquired. 

"And  I  was  bid  to  tell  you,  Colonel,"  said 
the  lady,  with  a  smile,  "  that  whether  you  do  or 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          343 

do  not  assert  your  claim  to  Avenel,  your  uncle 
considers  himself  fairly  provided  with  this 
'consolation  stakes/  'Tis  my  old  friend, 
Bessy  Poythress,  who,  alone  of  her  family,  will 
require  the  sympathy  of  the  benevolent,  since 
for  so  many  years  she  has  been  accustomed 
to  think  of  ending  her  days  a  Countess  of 
Avenel." 

"  Leave  America  !  "  exclaimed  Rolfe,  unheed- 
ing this  mild  feminine  shaft.  "  Why,  May 
will  —  " 

"  You  are  right,  my  dear  sir/'  went  on  the 
lady,  supplying  what  in  his  excitement  he  had 
cut  short  to  walk  up  and  down  the  little  sitting- 
room  lighted  chiefly  by  a  glowing  fire  of  logs. 
"  May  will  suffer  most  keenly  from  this  re- 
moval. The  dear  child,  whom  I  dare  no 
longer  call  my  little  friend,  since  she's  taller 
by  a  head  than  I  am,  —  and  of  a  noble  port 
and  presence,  —  is,  in  these  days,  my  favourite 
heroine.  Her  whole  heart  is  with  us ;  her 
father's,  and  the  disposition  of  the  household, 
with  our  enemy.  What  a  situation  for  a  young 
female  possessing  her  sensibility  and  conscience. 
I  protest,  if  'twere  not  for  the  presence  in  their 
home  of  your  mother, — who  has  been  indispen- 
sable to  her  during  this  time  of  trial, —  I  know 
not  how  she  could  have  borne  up  under  it." 

"My  dear  brave  May ! "  cried  the  soldier, 
irrepressibly.  "  How  long  is  it,  I  wonder, 
since  my  best  thoughts  of  Vue  de  1'Eau  have 


344          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

been  hers.  You  cannot  imagine  what  her 
spirit,  her  letters,  have  been  to  me.  She  is 
the  inspiration  of  my  life,  and  has  promised 
some  day  to  marry  me." 

"  Then  why,  pray,"  said  Madam  Washing- 
ton, quickly,  "  do  you  permit  yourself  to  part 
with  her?"' 

"You  think  —  "  exclaimed  the  young  man, 
returning  quickly  to  her  side,  "  you  believe  I 
may  dare  ?  I,  a  ragged  starveling  soldier,  who 
knows  not  what  fate  awaits  him  — " 

"  Is  it  not  so  with  many  another  of  our 
brave  officers  ?  "  answered  the  gentle  temptress, 
in  whose  white  hands  flashed  the  needles  with 
which  she  was  knitting  her  General  a  pair  of 
socks. 

"  Dearest  lady  ! "  cried  he,  kneeling  beside 
her  to  pour  out  his  full  heart.  "  If  you  knew 
what  a  flood  of  light  you  have  turned  upon  my 
path!'; 

"'Tis  because  I've  long  divined  your  true 
feelings,"  she  said,  smiling  demurely,  "  that  I 
have  ventured  to  speak  thus.  And,  to  let  a 
big  cat  out  of  the  bag,  'tis  not  my  fancy  only, 
but  the  General's,  that  May  would  be  better 
remaining  in  this  country  as  your  wife,  than 
separated  from  you  and  all  of  us,  under  such 
untoward  circumstances.  Lastly,  I  cannot 
think  of  the  happiness  of  any  one  that  would 
more  confirm  my  husband's,  than  that  of  his 
darling  god-daughter." 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          345 

Rolfe  sprang  again  upon  his  feet.  As  he 
stood  there,  with  the  firelight  playing  upon  his 
great  frame  in  the  shabby  uniform,  upon  his 
noble  manly  head,  his  friend,  with  womanly 
approval,  decided  that  May  would  have  a  hus- 
band second  in  good  looks  only  to  her  own  ! 

"  This  makes  me  bold  enough  to  tell  you," 
he  said,  his  deep  voice  tender,  "that  my  love 
for  her  —  coming  I  know  not  when  —  fed 
upon  absence  and  the  honour  I  bear  her  lofty 
womanhood  —  has  for  many  months  held  sole 
empire  of  my  heart.  To  win  her  has  been  my 
dearest  hope  —  but  to  win  her,  now  I  Not 
even  the  reward  of  her  hand  in  marriage  could 
tempt  me  to  leave  the  Line  at  such  a  crisis." 

"  I  have  reserved  for  the  last  my  final  argu- 
ment," exclaimed  his  confidante.  "  Your 
uncle  has  had  it  already  in  mind  to  pass  by 
our  camp  in  April  on  his  way  to  Philadelphia 
to  take  ship  in  New  York.  The  General  has 
offered  him,  indeed,  a  safe-conduct  through 
our  lines  from  here.  'Twould  be  an  odd  wed- 
ding and  a  strange  honeymoon  for  our  May,  in 
a  waiting  camp  like  this.  But  a  soldier's  sweet- 
heart must  not  be  too  choice  ;  and  oh  !  Colonel, 
how  the  contagion  of  your  felicity  will  inspire 
our  hearts !  What  pleasure  my  General  will 
have  in  a  matrimonial  connection  between  two 
friends  so  esteemed  by  him.  And,  above  all, 
what  satisfaction  for  me  in  the  thought  that  I 
may  not  lose  my  dear  neighbours  altogether. 


346          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

For,  when  the  war  is  over,  you  will  no  doubt 
make  it  your  congenial  task  to  rebuild  Vue  de 
1'Eau  —  There,  there,  how  my  fancies  lead  me 
on  — there  is  no  matchmaker,  says  my  husband, 
like  a  happy  wife  !  " 

As  Madam  Washington  paused  to  staunch 
the  tears  that,  despite  her  cheerful  talk,  gath- 
ered in  her  eyes,  the  two  were  joined  by  the 
Comrnander-in-chief,  whose  careworn  face, 
when  the  subject  under  debate  was  transmitted 
to  him  by  his  wife,  wore  a  sparkle  of  satisfac- 
tion foreign  to  it  for  many  a  day. 

"  You  have  my  warmest  wishes  in  your 
endeavour,  Colonel,"  he  said.  "  God  knows 
I  should  welcome  a  beam  of  sunshine  through 
the  clouds  of  this  heavy  season.  And  let  me 
tell  you,  sir,  that  whatever  you  win  of  happi- 
ness, you  will  have  fairly  earned.  Believe  me, 
of  such  patriots  as  you,  your  country  has  good 
right  to  be,  as  your  General  is,  proud  !  " 

Rolfe  bowed  low.  After  that  there  was 
never  any  backward  thought  of  the  worldly 
advantages  he  had  renounced.  He  did,  in- 
deed, go  so  far  as  to  consult  his  Chief  in  the 
matter,  and  Washington  counselled  him  to 
make  no  formal  renunciation  of  his  claims, 
which  indeed  would  be  useless,  since  the  affair, 
already  known  to  several  people,  must  be  fully 
exposed  in  the  event  of  any  litigation;  in  which 
case,  no  claimant  could  attempt  to  supersede 
Rolfe,  least  of  all  the  honest  and  conscientious 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          347 

Hugh  Poythress.  And  although  the  anomaly 
was  patent  of  a  soldier  in  arms  against  the 
British  Crown  asserting  a  present  claim  to  a 
seat  in  the  House  of  Lords,  the  time  might 
come  when  Rolfe  would  think  differently  of 
his  privileges.  But  although  his  Chief's 
words  were  restrained  and  prudent,  Rolfe  felt 
the  influence  of  "  that  mind,  like  light  gleam- 
ing through  an  unshaped  world,"  that  in  those 
days  "rode  upon  the  storm  of  Revolution." 
He  knew  instinctively  that,  as  he  meant  to 
act,  his  glorious  leader  would  have  acted  in 
similar  circumstances.  And  so,  what  Rolfe 
had  avowed  more  than  three  years  before  in 
the  first  heat  of  boyish  enthusiasm,  was  now 
confirmed  by  the  resolute  purpose  of  his  man- 
hood. 

He  sent  off  to  his  Uncle  Poythress  —  for 
whom  no  difference  of  politics  could  change 
his  ardent  affection  —  a  letter  reiterating  his 
former  disinclination  to  offer  himself  as  a 
claimant  of  the  English  title ;  congratulating 
Hugh  Poythress  upon  the  substantial  addition 
to  his  means  that  would  make  up  to  him  his 
losses  by  the  war ;  and  urging  that  May  should 
be  married,  and  left  in  America  with  him. 

In  the  matter  of  property,  Rolfe  had  already 
accepted  from  his  uncle  the  portion  set  aside 
for  Richard  Poythress'  son ;  which,  with  the 
lands  coming  to  him  under  the  deed  from  the 
Indian  Nations,  would,  in  the  event  of  the  sue- 


348  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

cess  of  the  American  arms,  give  him  enough 
for  his  needs  as  a  son  of  the  "infant  Republic  "  ! 

Thus  came  about,  in  the  month  of  April  of 
that  year,  the  great  joy  and  great  trial  of  May 
Poythress'  life.  To  part,  under  such  circum- 
stances, with  her  family  rent  her  affectionate 
heart.  But,  for  this  and  all  other  earthly  cares, 
there  was  requital  in  the  possession  of  Rolfe's 
love,  and  comradeship  for  life. 

A  war-wedding  at  headquarters  !  Madam 
Poythress,  recapitulating  the  incidents  of  this 
occasion  with  her  eldest  daughter  as  their 
party  went  on  its  way  into  Philadelphia,  leav- 
ing May  with  her  husband,  to  return  afterward 
to  live  at  the  plantation  in  his  mother's  com- 
pany whilst  war  lasted,  wondered  if,  ever  in  the 
world,  a  bride  had  stood  up  before  the  clergy- 
man in  a  riding-habit  of  gray  duffle  in  fashion 
three  years  old. 

"  Mrs.  Knox  and  my  Lady  Stirling  were 
vastly  civil  in  offering  my  child  furbelows,  but 
May  was  obstinate  in  wearing  what  would 
match  with  poor  dear  Rolfe's  threadbare  blue 
and  buff.  My  first  care  shall  be  to  send  her 
some  clothes  more  suited  to  her  condition. 
And  you,  Betty,  are  but  a  dowdy  in  that  faded 
great-coat  and  hat.  What  a  figure  to  meet  the 
officers  who  will  undoubtedly  wait  upon  us  on 
our  arrival  in  Philadelphia." 

"  I  would  wear  this  as  long  again,"  cried 
Betty,  with  sudden  passion,  "  to  be  as  happy 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          349 

as  darling  May  looked  when  we  left  her.  I 
think,  mother,  when  I  am  a  little  old  maid, 
riding  bodkin,  or  playing  cards  with  you  and 
my  father,  and  visiting  our  poor,  I  shall  still 
remember  that  joyous,  trustful,  wholly  satisfied 
expression  of  my  sister's  face,  when  she  gave 
herself  to  the  man  she  loves." 

"  Nonsense,  Betty.  You  a  little  old  maid, 
indeed  ! "  exclaimed  Madam  Poythress,  bris- 
tling up. 

"  We  shall  see,"  answered  Betty,  quietly. 

No  doubt  Miss  Poythress,  in  making  this 
prophecy,  was  entirely  sincere.  But  we  all 
know  that  such  arrangements  on  the  part  of 
handsome  young  women  are  liable  to  change 
by  circumstance.  Certainly,  the  portrait  painted 
by  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  of  "  Mrs.  Flower," 
which,  in  mezzo-tint,  has  since  been  often 
reproduced,  and  is  to  this  day  admired,  shows 
the  Rose  of  the  Potomac  in  unruffled  beauty, 
every  petal  wide  open  to  the  sun  of  prosperity 
and  love. 

If  Betty  had  not  met  Geoffry  Flower  at 
the  Mischianza,  to  which  gay  function  she  had 
gone  unwillingly  directly  after  her  arrival  in 
Philadelphia  at  the  solicitation  of  some  friends, 
Sir  Joshua  might,  perhaps,  have  had  his  sitter 
under  another  name.  For  it  is  a  fact  that 
Miss  Poythress  had  a  brilliant  career  at  the 
Court  of  King  George  III.,  and  was  sought  in. 


350          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

marriage  by  more  than  one  suitor  of  distinc- 
tion. 

But  while  Betty,  with  her  mother,  had  been 
looking  on  at  the  war-pageant  on  the  banks  of 
the  Delaware,  her  heart  had  wandered  afar  off, 
back  to  a  stretch  of  blossomy  woodland  road 
in  old  Virginia,  where  she  had  ridden  side  by 
side  with  one  whose  pulses  had  seemed  to 
keep  bounding  time  with  hers !  Cards  had 
been  left  for  the  ladies  by  Colonel  Flower  the 
day  before ;  but  they  had  missed  him,  and  this 
depressing  occurrence  confirmed  the  sadness  of 
her  thoughts  in  his  direction.  She  longed,  yet 
dreaded,  to  lay  eyes  on  him  again.  How  was 
it  possible  a  man  of  his  pretension,  opportunity, 
distinction,  should  have  retained,  during  all 
these  years,  any  tender  sentiment  for  a  girl 
who  had  played  him  false  ?  Was  it  not,  there- 
fore, better  they  should  never  meet  again,  than 
meet  and  clasp  hands  over  a  passion  dead  for 
him  ? 

Happening  to  look  across  a  sea  of  interven- 
ing faces,  she  saw  one  turned  upon  her  with  an 
eager  appeal,  a  radiant  joy,  that  could  mean 
but  one  thing,  in  all  this  weary  world !  De- 
taching himself  from  a  group  of  brother-officers, 
Geoffry  worked  his  way  through  the  crowd  to 
reach  her  side,  his  heart  light  as  his  tread,  his 
hopes  high  as  heaven.  The  prim  messages  of 
friendship  she  had  schooled  herself  to  send 
him  through  her  father's  letters,  were  forgotten. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          351 

The  barricade  of  pride  and  strained  humility 
she  had  been  for  so  long  struggling  to  main- 
tain between  them,  fell  as  at  a  touch.  For, 
in  the  moment  of  the  meeting  of  their  gaze, 
Flower  had  discerned  much  more  than  she 
knew  herself  to  have  revealed.  And  he  noted, 
too,  with  quick  delight,  that  her  cheeks  wore 
his  King's  colour ! 

Before  they  left  the  bright  historic  scene, 
Betty  had  promised  to  wait  for  him  till  the  war 
should  be  over;  so  it  is  clear  that  Geoffry  was 
determined  to  lose  no  more  time  in  uncertainty. 
Their  nuptials,  upon  his  ultimate  return  to 
England,  were  upon  a  scale  of  elegance  that 
quite  consoled  Madam  Poythress  for  what  had 
been  lacking  in  May's  affair  at  Valley  Forge. 

A  tale  is  told  in  Virginia,  about  Betty's  pres- 
entation at  Court  by  her  mamma  upon  her 
marriage,  how,  in  the  crush  on  a  staircase,  the 
bride,  feeling  her  train  of  white  satin  jerked  at 
by  the  sword-hilt  of  some  one  near  her,  turning, 
discovered  the  innocent  offender  to  be  His  Ex- 
cellency the  late  Royal  Governor  of  Virginia. 
Whereat  —  so  gossip  says — Lord  Dunmore 
bowed  and  apologised,  and  Betty,  with  a 
haughty  sweep  of  her  lovely  head,  turned  away 
from  him  and  refused  to  speak  to  her  husband's 
old  commander.  The  little  spangled  fan  car- 
ried by  her  on  this  occasion  (sent  over,  later,  to 
a  namesake  at  Vue  de  1'Eau)  was  sported  in 
fancy  dress  at  a  "  Starvation  Party  "  in  Rich- 


352  A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

mond  during  our  war  between  the  States,  by  a 
pretty  young  person  who  styled  herself  "Lady 
Betty  Flower." 

The  Flowers  visited  Virginia,  after  the  Revo- 
lution, as  guests  of  the  Poythresses  at  Vue  de 
1'Eau  ;  during  which  time  —  in  the  spring  of 
1785  —  they  met  at  dinner  at  Mount  Vern on 
several  of  the  leaders  of  the  triumphant  move- 
ment against  which  GeofFry  Flower  had  fought 
from  first  to  last.  But  since  not  only  was  he  a 
guest  of  the  Commander-in-chief,  but  General 
Rolfe  Poythress,  his  brother-in-law,  could  af- 
ford to  be  on  such  excellent  terms  with  him, 
in  spite  of  the  late  unpleasantness,  Colonel 
Flower  was  received  by  Virginians  with  no 
token  of  resentment. 

May  and  Rolfe,  who  had  rebuilt  the  old 
home,  cared  hardly  ever  to  leave  it  and  their 
beloved  little  family,  to  cross  the  boisterous 
seas.  But  they  did  so,  more  than  once,  because 
Madam  Poythress,  always  a  poor  sailor,  could 
not  bring  herself  to  go  in  search  of  them. 
They  found  their  parents  duly  installed  at  their 
manor  house  in  Hampshire,  and  fitted  into 
their  niche  as  a  hand  is  suited  to  the  well-made 
glove.  Madam  Poythress  filled  to  perfection 
her  part  of  lady  bountiful.  The  Colonel,  soon 
a  general  favourite  in  his  county,  took  up  poli- 
tics with  zest,  and  restored  to  a  gloomy  old 
dwelling  its  long-vanished  cheerfulness  ;  devot- 
ing himself  otherwise  to  the  education  of  his 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          353 

son,  who  from  Oxford  went  into  the  army,  made 
an  excellent  marriage  —  and  in  every  way  real- 
ised the  hopes  of  his  honest  sire.  A  great  joy 
of  Colonel  Poythress  was  the  petting  of  his 
grandchildren,  who  blossomed  about  the  ver- 
dant lawns  and  under  the  forest  reaches  sur- 
rounding his  estate,  whenever  he  could  decoy 
them  for  a  visit  from  their  home  in  Devon- 
shire. 

Of  the  Flowers'  establishment,  one  of  the 
lesser  dignitaries  was  trooper  Keys,  the  lodge- 
keeper,  espoused  unto  a  damsel  of  this  his 
native  county,  whom  he  had  beheld  one  Sun- 
day afternoon  after  his  return  from  the  Ameri- 
can war,  sitting  under  a  hedge  of  foxgloves, 
and  had  courted  with  small  delay. 

Parson  Nimrod  Snow,  arriving  in  Virginia  at 
the  close  of  hostilities,  presented  to  his  friends 
a  large  masterful  lady  —  a  ship-chandler's  widow 
of  Liverpool  —  whom  he  had  married,  presum- 
ably because  she  willed  him  so  to  do ;  but 
as  Mrs.  Snow  was  comfortably  off,  and  took 
good  care  of  him,  the  little  gentleman  could 
not  complain  of  Fortune's  allotment  in  his 
direction. 

Lord  Fairfax  of  Greenway  Court,  living  to 
hear  of  the  surrender  of  His  Majesty's  troops 
at  Yorktown  to  Washington,  whom  he  had 
trained  and  cherished  as  a  son,  turned  wearily 
to  his  faithful  servant  Joe,  and  said :  "  Take 
me  to  bed,  Joe.  It  is  time  for  me  to  go." 


354          A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion 

With  his  death,  shortly  after,  and  the  treaty 
recognising  Virginia  as  a  State  independent  of 
the  mother  country,  my  Lord's  great  proprie- 
tary domain  in  the  broad  lands  of  the  Northern 
Neck  vanished  from  the  grasp  of  his  successors 
in  the  Fairfax  title  which,  returning  to  England 
for  a  while,  was  again  transplanted  to  Virginia 
in  the  next  generation  and  still  remains  with  us. 

Mad  Ann  Bailey  was  long  known  in  the 
frontier  country  for  her  acts  of  eccentric  kind- 
ness. Her  visits  to  cabin  and  farmhouse  were 
welcomed  heartily,  and,  so  long  as  she  lived, 
once  a  year  was  despatched  to  her  from  Vue  de 
TEau  a  substantial  token  of  its  owner's  grati- 
tude for  benefits  received. 

Crogan,  Adams,  Long,  and  the  rest  of 
the  hardy  borderers,  those  strong,  simple,  pas- 
sionate, powerful  conquerors  of  the  wilderness, 
who  founded  many  of  the  present  families  in 
their  part  of  Virginia  and  in  Kentucky,  con- 
tinued to  fight  Indians  for  years  following  Lord 
Dunmore's  war.  After  them  came  another 
kind  of  settlers  carrying  rifles  sometimes,  axes 
always,  whose  peaceful  occupation  of  the  soil 
had  been  secured  to  them  by  the  blood  and 
the  sweat  of  their  predecessors. 

Helen  Poythress  resided  for  some  years  at 
Deer  Lodge,  surviving  her  brothers,  but  refus- 
ing to  leave  again  her  forest  home.  Still  cold 
and  grim  in  exterior,  she  was  at  heart  a  loving 
devotee  to  her  children  and  to  their  daughters. 


A  Son  of  the  Old  Dominion          355 

General  Poythress  never  called  himself  Lord 
Avenel  or  made  any  assertion  of  right  to  use 
the  title ;  he  never  had  a  son,  and  it  was  left  to 
his  wife's  brother  to  establish  an  unquestioned 
claim  to  that  dignity  in  the  British  galaxy. 

As  for  the  other  personages  of  this  chronicle, 
—  those  who  belong  to  history,  —  are  not  their 
names  inscribed  upon  stones  that  do  not  lean, 
or  split  asunder,  or  gather  moss  ? 


THE    END 


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